BPO complex to rise in Lahug

A P6-billion business process outsourcing (BPO) complex will soon rise in barangay Lahug, Cebu City as a joint venture between the Province of Cebu and Filinvest Land Inc.

Officials laid down a time capsule during yesterday’s groundbreaking ceremony.

“Our bond with Cebu is getting deeper,” saidFilinvest chief executive officer Joseph Yap

Construction of the first 10-story building will start in the third quarter this year and will be finished in 2013.

Filinvest won the bid under a Build-Transfer–Operate scheme with the Province of Cebu for its 1.2 hectare property along Salinas Drive near the Asiatown IT Park.

The first P1.7-billion building will stand on a 15,000-sq. meter lot, which the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center (BBRC) and the Cebu Center for the Ultimate Rehabilitation of Drug Dependents once stood.

The entire project will be developed over five years with a total investment of P6 billion and is expected to generate 15,000 to 20,000 jobs.

This will make a “climate for business that is most conducive,” said Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia in her speech.

Yap said he estimated more than a thousand jobs will be available during the first year after the first building is done.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama donned hard hats along with the governor, Rep. Pablo Garcia and Filinvest officials, and shoveled gravel into the hole where the time capsule was laid.

Filinvest is a major investor in the South Road Properties of Cebu City where it is developing Citta di Mare, a seaside resort city with commercial and residential buildings.

Congressman Garcia of Cebu’s 2nd district and a former Cebu governor recalled the partnership of the Province of Cebu and the Ayalas for the development of Asiatown IT Park through the creation of the Cebu Property Ventures and Development Corporation (CPVDC).

“I am glad that Filinvest came at a time when the mayor is cooperative with the projects of the province of Cebu,” he said in Cebuano.

On March 12, the Cebu Provincial Board approved the resolution authorizing Governor Garcia to sign the build-transfer-operate (BTO) agreement with Filinvest.

Under the agreement, Filinvest will develop, construct, and operate the BPO Complex. Filinvest will operate and manage the facility for 25 years with a renewal option for another 25 years.

Filinvest will start paying the province P50 per square meter for the lot, 60 days after the contract signing.

Garcia said Filinvest will pay a monthly rental of P600,000 for the property. /Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus