The National Development Co. (NDC) is conducting a study for the best use of a prime property vacated by US firm GE Lighting in Makati City, valued at P8 billion, according to Saturnino Mejia, assistant general manager.
Mejia in a press briefing also said the agency is negotiating on the terms of the lease of Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI) on certain parcels of land used for its energy infrastructure, including its oil depot in Batangas.
Mejia said the 1.7-hectare Makati City property used to be the manufacturing facility of GE Lighting whose lease ended last August 31 after 50 years. GE ceased production of lighting products in 2004.
According to Mejia, NDC which owns 60 percent of the property, has conducted remediation proceedings with GE which owns the remaining 40 percent.
He said NDC has the option to lease, develop and build the property into what has been long planned as the One DTI headquarters where all the units of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be housed. NDC is the investment arm of the government under DTI.
Mejia said the Duterte administration had proposed to buy out the American company but this did not push through due to the pandemic in 2020.
Meanwhile, the NDC has tapped appraisal companies to assess the value of the 120-ha property leased by CPI through subsidiary Batangas Land Corp. Inc. (BLCI), according to Mejia.
The lease is up for renegotiation after CPI expressed interest to renew the current agreement which expires in 2025.
The NDC hopes to bring up the lease rates to market levels.
The previous administration had wanted to dissolve BLCI to enable the government renegotiate the rental fee.
Since 2010, BLCI has been paying 74 centavos per sq. m. a month on the lease of the Batangas property, which amounts to only P10.66 million per year. – Irma Isip
