Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) is prioritizing debt obligations and the completion of key tollway projects south of Manila before holding an initial public offering (IPO), a top executive said.
“The need for an infusion of equity is still, there but we have prioritized the debt servicing arrangements for the maturities that are going to be expected this next 12 months,” said MPTC president and chief executive Jose Ma. Lim said.
The company is working on three facilities to meet those requirements, he said. MPTC has about P70 billion to P80 billion of debt, including P20 billion to P25 billion expected to be covered by refinancing, Lim said.
The completion of the remaining sections of the Cavite Laguna Expressway (CALAX) and Cavitex-C5 Link (CCLink) will “greatly improve the prospects for the listing,” Lim said.
The completion of the roads has been delayed by issues with the right of way, he said, but the company expects to complete the section up to Governor’s Drive this year. The other two sections might spill into the first quarter of next year, according to Lim.
MPTC chairman Manuel Pangilinan earlier said the company was raising P20 billion to P40 billion to reduce its debt. He said the company was considering perpetual preferred shares or convertible preferred stock to raise capital.
Pangilinan also expects to complete merger talks with San Miguel Corp. (SMC) this year. The toll unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and SMC signed a P72-billion deal in August 2024 to jointly construct two expressways south of Metro Manila.
Under the agreement, MPTC and SMC will build, operate and maintain the 87.96-kilometer Cavite-Batangas Expressway and Nasugbu-Bauan Expressway.
MPTC operates 240.6 kilometers of expressways, with 43.1 kilometers under construction. These include the North Luzon Expressway, Subic Clark-Tarlac Expressway, Manila-Cavite Expressway and the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway.
SMC’s expressways include the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road, South Luzon Expressway, the Skyway System and the NAIA Expressway.
