Filinvest turns Cebu rehab center into BPO facility

MANILA, Philippines – Gotianun-led real estate firm Filinvest Land Inc. plans to turn the site of a former rehabilitation center in Cebu into a business process outsourcing (BPO) complex.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange on Tuesday, February 28, Filinvest said it won the bid for the 1.2-hectare property in Lahug City, which was the former site of the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center and the Cebu City Treatment and Rehabilitation Center.

The listed firm said the provincial government of Cebu awarded it the development of the proper under a build-operate-transfer scheme.

Previously, the Cebu government also awarded another project–water services–to a private firm, Manila Water, under a public-private partnership scheme

Filinvest projects

The planned office development within the Lahug property will add to the ongoing residential and hotel projects of FLI in the Cebu.

“FLI remains bullish on the BPO sector and is rapidly expanding its office portfolio to meet the needs of the industry. FLI believes that Cebu, in particular, has good potential for this business,” the company said.

At end 2011, FLI’s BPO office building portfolio had in excess of 170,000 square meters of gross leasable area (GLA) from 12 buildings in Northgate Cyberzone within Filinvest Corporate City in Muntinlupa City and PBCom Tower in Makati City.

Upcoming projects include the following:

• Northgate Cyberzone that will add close to 20,000 square meters of GLA in the first half of 2013. A 14th building is targeted to break ground within the year with a GLA of 13,000 square meters
• Vector Two, which was completed in the 4th quarter of 2011, is fully taken-up and has been turned over for tenant fit-outs
• 5-storey building along EDSA across the Asian Development Bank building, and is expected to be completed within 2012
• Citta di Mare, a 50.6-hectare development in the South Road Properties
• One Oasis Cebu, a mid-rise development of 10 buildings in a 3.7-hectare property adjacent to the Cebu Golf and Country Club
• Grand Cenia Hotel and Residences condolet, a 3-star hotel

– Rappler.com