METRO PACIFIC Tollways Corp. (MPTC) may further delay its plan to list on the stock exchange as the company focuses on debt reduction and completing ongoing road projects, according to its president.
“The need for an infusion of equity is still there but we have prioritized the debt servicing agreements for the maturities that are going to be expected in the next 12 months, we need to meet those requirements because this will greatly improve the prospects for the listing,” MPTC President and Chief Executive Officer Jose Ma. K. Lim told reporters last week.
In April, MPTC announced plans to go public as early as next year while concentrating on toll road expansion and debt reduction this year.
“MPTC is a promising IPO (initial public offering) candidate, but it has to rationalize its debt load to make the company more attractive to equity investors,” China Bank Capital Corp. Managing Director Juan Paolo E. Colet said in a Viber message.
MPTC is also working to complete the remaining sections of its road projects, particularly the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (Calax) and Cavitex-Calax Link Expressway Project (CCLink), before listing, Mr. Lim said.
“At the same time, we’re trying to complete the remaining sections of our roads in the south, especially Calax and CCLink, because those will greatly improve the prospects for the listing,” he added, noting that some right-of-way issues have delayed the projects’ completion.
For China Bank Capital’s Mr. Colet, an IPO deferral would give MPTC time to shed some assets to pay down debts as well as an opportunity to refinance loans as interest rates move lower due to expected policy rate cuts.
“The decision [to list] would be a function of market conditions. Selling at the highest possible price would be for the best interest of the issuer and the shareholders,” Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said.
“It would be a function of other share sales that could compete with investible funds in the market,” Mr. Ricafort added.
MPTC has cited uncertainties surrounding its IPO due to the company’s planned merger with San Miguel Corp. (SMC).
Mr. Lim declined to comment on MPTC’s anticipated merger with SMC.
MPTC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said earlier that the company deferred merger talks with San Miguel Corp. to focus on fundraising activities to reduce debt.
Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), which owns 99.9% of MPTC, said MPTC accounted for most of its P64.99-billion short-term debt and the current portion of its long-term debt as of end-2024.
MPIC is one of three key Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., alongside Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc.
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