SMC raising funds for airport projects
San Miguel Corp. (SMC) will use proceeds from its upcoming P30-billion preferred share offer to bankroll its major infrastructure projects. These include the rehabilitation of the country’s main gateway and the long-delayed airport in Bulacan province.
The conglomerate led by billionaire Ramon Ang on Friday said in a disclosure that it had filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) its updated registration statement and offer supplement for 266.67 million preferred shares for P75 each.
The offer also has an oversubscription option of up to 133.33 million shares.
Based on its preliminary prospectus dated Aug. 20, the shares will be offered from Oct. 13 to Oct. 17. It has yet to disclose the dividend rates.
Meanwhile, SMC said it would use the proceeds to “make additional investments in the infrastructure business,” including Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).
SMC last year took over the management of Naia for P170.6 billion, promising to improve the airport’s overall operations.
Apart from this, SMC said it would also use part of the proceeds to finance “other airport-related projects” in Bulacan.
The company is currently building the P740-billion New Manila International Airport (NMIA) seen to boost the country’s tourism by providing a new gateway to tourists.
Last year, SMC pushed back the completion of the project by a year to 2028 due to supply chain challenges. According to Ang, they were having a hard time sourcing sand. He said the project cost could increase by “hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Still, he insisted they were determined to complete the airport in three years.
Construction for NMIA started in 2019 after the signing of a 50-year concession agreement between SMC and the Department of Transportation.
Funds raised will likewise be used to refinance existing debt, SMC said.
In the first semester this year, the company benefited from one-time gains from the deconsolidation of its assets. This resulted in its earnings ballooning by nearly fivefold to P66.8 billion.
