By Ashley Erika O. Jose, Reporter
METRO PACIFIC Tollways Corp. (MPTC) is aiming for a 50-50 division in its planned merger with San Miguel Corp. (SMC), an organization official said.
“For us, the 50-50 split is a really ideal scenario… It’s a balancing act. Our preference from our side is 50-50,” MPTC Senior Executive Arrey A. Perez told reporters on Wednesday.
He said the corporate plans to leverage its international assets, with reports suggesting a 90-10 division favoring Ang-led SMC within the expected tollway merger.
“Whatever it takes to make that occur — the 50-50 — if we’re going to incorporate the international assets, we are going to include. For now, our mandate is to have a 50-50 arrangement,” Mr. Perez said.
The merger is unlikely to occur inside the 12 months, he also said.
“This stuff take time. These are huge assets. Whenever you do a merger, you could have to set your own home so as.”
Currently, MPTC is studying the valuation of the businesses, Mr. Perez said, adding that the corporate isn’t in a rush to conclude the planned merger.
“At the tip of the day, it’s all about arriving at a good valuation of their tollway portfolios to justify their respective stakes within the merged entity,” Chinabank Capital Corp. Managing Director Juan Paolo E. Colet said in a Viber message on Thursday.
“A 90-10 split favoring SMC over MPTC would feel more like a takeover than a merger. In such a structure, SMC would gain overwhelming control, leaving MPTC with limited influence on major decisions, especially on condition that SMC’s extensive tollway assets significantly outweigh those of MPTC,” Globalinks Securities and Stocks, Inc. Head of Sales Trading Toby Allan C. Arce said in a Viber message.
Mr. Arce said in a 50-50 split scenario, balanced control can be retained and would allow each firms to leverage their strengths equally and permit each operations to profit significantly through their strategic alignment.
He said a 50-50 merger can be expected to spice up investor confidence as it will be seen as a stronger alliance by market investors.
“This may lead to a more stable post-merger stock performance as shareholders gain confidence in a collaborative, fairly than contentious, business integration,” Mr. Arce said.
Nevertheless, Mr. Arce said that a 50-50 ownership structure between the 2 firms is likely to be difficult to realize, as they operate in a different way, which may lead to a choice deadlock.
“In a 50-50, decision-making may very well be difficult if each parties disagree on strategic directions. With no dominant party, gridlocks in decision-making could delay critical projects, especially in an industry where timely infrastructure projects are crucial,” Mr. Arce said.
In October, MPTC and its units along with Singapore’s GIC Pte. Ltd., a world institutional investor, finalized their investment cooperation valued at $1 billion for the acquisition of a 35% stake in PT Jasamarga Transjawa Tol, a significant toll road operator in Indonesia.
MPTC is the tollway arm of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which is certainly one of three key Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Helpful Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.
