SM Prime Holdings Inc. and Ayala Land Inc. has expressed interest in bidding for a government owned multi-billion prime lot in Bonifacio Global City.

At a minimum bid price of P160,000 per square meter, the lot with a gross floor area of approximately 144,000 square meters is worth more than P23 billion. 

In a press conference, Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) president and chief executive officer Narciso Abaya said  that aside from SM and Ayala Land, the Gokongweis through their property arm Robinsons Land and Megaworld have likewise expressed interest in joining the bidding.

Three international developers have also signified their intention to bid for the lot located in the expanded big delta in Fort Bonifacio.

These are Singapore-based Ascendas, American real estate mogul Donald Trump’s The Net-Trump Group and Hong Kong based Shangri-La Hotel.  Because the lot is within the E-Square, an economic zone, the potential developer can avail of fiscal and non fiscal incentives given by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA).

The former Government Center for Investment (GCI) is classified as mixed use meaning it can be a residential, office or commercial/retail complex. Abaya said the lot is at the “primest portion�? of the Bonifacio Global City because it is along fifth avenue across the Fort and in the Gateway of City Center. 

The lot is the only remaining available property in E-Square. Most of the lots have already been sold by the Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation to third party buyers.

The land was bidded out before but it failed since sale and transfer of titles were not allowed due to the mortgage on the lot.

However, Abaya assured that this time BCDA is allowing a sale or joint venture or a combination provided that bidders can address the mortgage issue.

This can mean that the bidder will propose a substitute facility that will allow BCDA to transfer titles or the bidders can opt to frontload the value of the property to pay off the mortgage.

“We are optimistic that the bidding will not only generate for BCDA revenues for conversion projects but more importantly it will further maximize values of the whole Bonifacio Global City,�? Abaya said.

The Bonifacio Global City boasts of a central location that is a few minutes away from the Makati and Ortigas Central Business Districts, the airport and major thoroughfares like C-5.

It has world-class infrastructure that includes an underground drainage detention structure with the capacity to hold 22 million liters of water and release it under controlled conditions to prevent floods.

It also has a fiber optic cabling network to support a wide range of telephone, video and data applications.