Anchor Land Holdings, Inc.

Real Estate company Manila Tower Development Corp., a unit of listed developer Anchor Land Holdings, Inc. (ALHI), announced on Monday its purchase of Lopez- Araneta controlled Admiral Realty Company Inc. as a part of the parent firm’s P4 billion plan to expand its presence into the prime Manila Bay area.

Admiral Realty owns the Admiral Hotel on Roxas Boulevard in Manila.

The acquisition is the first of three properties in Metro Manila ALHI is looking to purchase this year for future developments, said vice chairman Steve Li in a text message to the Business Mirror.
In a disclosure to the local stock exchange, Manila Tower said it paid a total of P360 million for the entire Admiral Realty assets, which include the hotel building and an adjacent lot for a combined land area of 3,446.2 square meters. Also parts of the purchase price are advances for Admiral Realty’s debt amounting to 101.35 million.

ALHI said al shareholders and creditors were paid in full on June 26, the same day the acquisition was sourced from internally generated cash and loan from China Banking Corp.

ALHI said it plans to renovate the original building, which was completed in 1939 and served as important social destination during the pre – World War II era, into a 5 – star boutique hotel. An upscale twin tower condominium, to be called Admiral Baysuites, will rise on the adjacent property.

Earlier, Li said the company’s future projects will be geared toward increasing its presence in under serviced areas while growing its customer base which was previously focused on Filipino – Chinese buyers.

The company’s first venture outside Manila area is its twin – tower 18 – storey Sole Mare Parksuites near the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, which the company is currently expanding. Veronica Lladoc of ALHI said the first phase of Sole Mare is already sold out.

Capital expenditures for 2009 has been allotted P2.5 billion, or 25 percent over last year’s P2 billion, which Li said, will fund new and ongoing projects.

New project to be launched this year are the P3 billion Anchor Skysuites, which will be the Binondo areas tallest building at 55 – stories and the 38 – storey Wharton Parksuites, which will cost P1.2 billion to develop.