Ayala Corp passes Vinaphil to CII
Ayala Corp passes Vinaphil to CII
The Philipines’ oldest conglomerate, Ayala Corporation has voted to divest its entire 49 per cent holding in Vinaphil Technical Infrastructure Investment JSC (Vinaphil) to Ho Chi Minh City Infrastructure Investment JSC (CII), according to newswire Philstar.com.
However, no reason was given for the divestment.
The divestment comes four years after Ayala inked an agreement with CII and other Vietnamese investors to establish the joint venture, which has the initial capital of $43 million.
After the divestment, Ayala’s management board also approved the creation of a new subsidiary, HCX Technology Partners Inc., for the acquisition of the human resource outsourcing assets of HR Mall Inc.
Ayala is one of the largest conglomerates in the Philippines, with activities extending to real estate, financial services, telecommunications, and a broad range of investments in water, electronics, automotive, international operations, and business process outsourcing. Recently, it has ventured into the power generation and transport infrastructure sectors to spur faster growth.
In November 2015, Ayala’s wholly-owned Singaporean subsidiary Manila Water South Asia Holdings Pte., Ltd. (Manila Water) completed the purchase of 24.5 per cent of Cu Chi Water Supply Sewerage Company Ltd. Besides, it holds a 31.5 per cent stake in Saigon Water Infrastructure JSC.
CII has a portfolio of strategic infrastructure assets, including water treatment plants and toll roads leading to Ho Chi Minh City and the surrounding areas. This water company also holds a stake in Thu Duc Water BOO Corp., a water treatment company which is now 49 per cent-owned by Manila Water.
In addition to water infrastructure, CII holds toll road concessions, such as the 15.7-kilometre expansion of the Hanoi Highway, which connects north-eastern Ho Chi Minh City to Bien Hoa, an industrial centre located in south Vietnam.
CII plans to make further investments in new water infrastructure initiatives and is considering expansion into other types of infrastructure projects, such as public transportation terminals.
