THE government is consolidating its properties under the National Development Co. (NDC) to lease or qualify them in new contracts that will benefit mostly state coffers, according to Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez.
Lopez on Wednesday told reporters the government is retrieving its properties under the NDC to enter them in new leasing arrangements that will increase government collection. The NDC Board, as such, is creating a liquidation committee tasked to review the value of the properties, including and especially the 120-hectare land in Batangas co-owned by Chevron Philippines.
“We will create a committee there and the intention is for the government to consolidate and buy the shares of the partner Chevron,” Lopez said.
Upon buyout and after review, Lopez said the government will most likely keep the properties under its sole ownership. The options being considered right now is to either put them up for lease or qualify them in a new joint venture—that’s if the government and Chevron do not end up in agreement on new terms.
“If we want to package it as a joint venture in the future with a real-estate project, it will benefit the government much. We won’t probably sell it because you don’t benefit from appreciation,” Lopez explained. “If ever, long-term lease or participate in a JV project that can extract more value.”
According to the trade chief, the government has already consolidated its NDC property in Las Piñas and is on its way in doing the same for the one in Makati. As for the Batangas land, the government will use funds through the NDC and loans from a state bank to acquire the share of Chevron in the property.
“Yes,” Lopez replied when sought if the objective is to bring back to government hands all of NDC’s properties, “especially the valuable ones that we think will benefit the government and the people of the Philippines.”
“There’s no issue with the investors. We are honoring the contract. We even allowed company corporate life to end and renegotiation on the balance,” he added. “We are not unilaterally revising or changing our contracts [with the private sector].”
Lopez claimed he is not aware if there are any other contracts the government is reviewing or renegotiating following the Chevron deal.
“Review and changing of contracts are not automatic, more so claiming they are onerous and all that,” he said. “Again, these are exceptional cases that we identified, but, otherwise, we are not tinkering with the other contracts.”
Last week, the Department of Finance said the government will shut down Batangas Land Co. Inc.—an NDC subsidiary—by 2021 after it uncovered its allegedly onerous deal with Chevron.
In turn, the government is eyeing to buy out the shares of Chevron in the 120-hectare property in Batangas in a move to consolidate ownership of the land. The joint venture was a result of the expiration of the Laurel-Langley Agreement in 1974, disallowing foreigners to wholly own land.
The NDC is a government-owned and -controlled corporation attached to the Department of Trade and Industry. The government’s investment arm manages about P4.5 billion worth of portfolios.
According to the government’s website, the NDC “develops, finances, and implements pioneering development oriented projects to achieve inclusive growth.”