Metro Pacific to buy controlling stake in Asian Hospital

Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), the local arm of Hong Kong conglomerate First Pacific Co. Ltd., is set to acquire the controlling interest in Asian Hospital Inc. In a statement to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Metro Pacific said it has reached an agreement with Bumrungrad International that will enable MPIC to execute transactions to acquire a controlling interest in the 219-bed hospital in Filinvest Corporate City in Alabang, Muntinlupa. Under the agreement, MPIC will buy 100 percent of the shares of Bumrungrad International Philippines Inc., which owns about 532.58 million shares of AHI for some P732 million, 100 percent of the shares of Neptune Stroika Holdings Inc., which owns 473.15 million shares of AHI for about P601 million, and 88.55 million shares of AHI for about P123 million. The transactions, expected to be completed before the year ends, will enable MPIC to acquire no less than 57 percent of AHI. AHI will be the sixth hospital of Metro Pacific— the 4th in Metro Manila —following Makati Medical Center, Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan, and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Sta. Mesa, Manila. Metro Pacific also invested in Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod and Davao Doctors Hospital in Mindanao. With the acquisition of AHI, the MPIC Hospital Group will have over 1,800 beds throughout the Philippines. “We are excited with our investment in Asian Hospital, one of the premier medical facilities in our country that is about to complete its 14-storey second tower which cost approximately P1.2 billion to build," said MPIC Hospital Group president and CEO Augie Palisoc Jr. “Tower 2 will house an additional 144 beds (thereby increasing capacity to 363 beds), outpatient facilities, doctors’ clinics, food outlets and even more parking spaces for our customer," said Palisoc added. — CMA/VS, GMA News