MANILA – Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc. (AIC) bought minority stakes in Pampanga-based Balibago Waterworks System, Inc. (BWSI) on Thursday.
In a disclosure with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Thursday, Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV) – the parent company of AIC – said its infrastructure and infrastructure-related business unit acquired 11.14 percent share of BWSI from San Fernando Electric Light & Power Co for P275 million.
BWSI is recognized by the National Water Resources Board as the largest province-based privately owned waterworks system nationwide.
It services running water to more than 150,000 households in over 50 water distribution areas in the country.
This purchase is in addition to AIC’s acquisition of Batangas-based LiMA Water Corp. (LWC) from AEV’s land business unit Aboitiz Land, Inc. last Tuesday, Aug. 1. All water investments of the Aboitiz Group are now consolidated under AIC.
On the other hand, LWC provides industrial and potable water from its own deep well sources and reservoirs. It has daily capacity of servicing 8,700 cubic meter and full capacity of 40,000 cubic meters.
“These acquisitions will enable AIC to establish its position as a provider of water and wastewater-related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers,” said AIC chair Erramon Aboitiz. “These steps are key for AIC to achieve its goal of building franchises across the entire water value chain,” added Aboitiz, who is also the AEV president and chief executive officer.
Meanwhile, AEV posted a net income of P10.3 billion in the first half of this year, two percent lower than the P10.5 billion net income in the same period in 2016.
AEV attributed the lower income to non-recurring losses of PHP495 million from foreign exchange losses from the revaluation of dollar denominated loans.
