Sunday, July 7, 2013

Mactan Rock pours P100M into infra with gov’t partners

By Katlene O. Cacho
Saturday, July 6, 2013
A CEBU-BASED water solutions provider, Mactan Rock Industries Inc., is allocating P100 million in capital expenditure (capex) this year to finance new and existing public-private partnerships (PPP) in water infrastructure projects.
The company currently has close to 10 existing partnerships with local government units (LGU) and water districts all over the country for bulk water supply and distribution.
Once completed, Lito Maderazo, president and chief executive officer of Mactan Rock, said the partnerships can generate 40,000 cubic meters of water supply.
He said they are on the lookout for more opportunities to grow their water business supply and distribution, given the huge demand for water, particularly in remote areas.
“What we are currently embarking on is bigger than our barangayan project as this already involves a wider scope,” said Maderazo, referring to the company’s water business reach from Aparri to Midsayap.
This year, Maderazo said the firm is expecting to sign three partnerships with LGUs and water districts in central and northern Mindanao, southern and northern Luzon, and eastern and western Visayas.
He said the objective of putting water infrastructure in place is to help municipalities attract more investments and ensure that water supply will not be a huge concern among investors.
Mactan Rock, with plant and business office in Lapu-Lapu City, has been supplying treated water to Metro Cebu Water District in Cebu City, and Puerto Princesa Water District and Coron, both in Palawan.
Asked whether the transition in government leadership would affect their existing and planned partnerships, Maderazo said they see to it that they come up with contracts that stand on solid and legal grounds.
“Water is an important commodity in the community and LGUs play an important role in realizing water infrastructure so we make sure our projects are not affected despite leadership transition,” said Maderazo.
The Aquino administration is pushing for private-public partnerships to sustain growth and meet infrastructure needs. In the first quarter this year, the 7.8 percent growth in the gross domestic product (from 6.5 percent in the same months in 2012), was attributed to sustained government capital expenditure and upbeat consumer sentiment.

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