By: Victor C. Agustin
InterAksyon.com means BUSINESS
Not very many people know that Lucio Tan's Fortune Tobacco had a whopping P19 billion in unsecured loan from a syndicate of banks when it capitulated to Philip Morris and agreed in early 2010 to a fifty-fifty joint venture, with the US tobacco giant taking over the management of the bigger local player to form a monopolistic combine.
That loan, along with an exit provision for Fortune Tobacco, was not disclosed during the February 25, 2010 press conference, right after the two previously fierce competitors formalized their marriage.
A rare announcement from the LT Group Wednesday that it was no longer seeking to exercise but also terminate its exit option came therefore as a surprise to even the small community of business reporters.
Why announce a sub rosa provision that, after all, will remain unexercised?
The simple explanation, according to the pro-Tan grapevine, was that the previously secretive cigarette business has now become part of the listed LT Group and, hence, the need to disclose the latest board resolution.
The underlying unstated assumption was that the Chinoy immigrant was happy to let the Americans, in a role reversal, to continue working for him.
As to that P19-billion loan, not only had the Fortune Tobacco liability been assumed but the humongous facility had also been completely paid for by the joint venture as of February, before the third anniversary of the merger.
On top of the P19-billion debt extinction, the joint venture had pulled in almost P20 billion in profits just in the last two years.
And in a testament of how tobacco is such a fabulous money machine, the record profits and debt repayment came even after PMFTC already handed to BIR Commissioner Kim Henares P29.7 billion in excise taxes for 2012 alone, on top of P9.7 billion in output VAT and another P12.7 billion in imports and custom duties and tariff fees added to the ever-increasing collection target of recently resigned Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon.
The revenue payments are of such lofty magnitude any lingering Ramos-era memories of the taipan occupying a special place in the BIR hit list has already been consigned to the dust bin of history.
Another interesting tidbit in Wednesday's announcement -- the value of LT Group stake in the joint venture has been pegged at P51.5 billion, should the taipan suffer an eight-year itch and head to the exit door before February 25, 2018.
That represents a substantial premium, since the acquisition cost of Fortune Tobacco, including its nationwide distribution network and Tan's adhesion to a non-compete clause, came up to, according to PMFTC documents, only P12.8 billion.
PMFTC was incorporated on December 8, 2009, almost three months before the formal signing of the merger documents, a credit as to how the principals had managed to keep the unlikely alliance without emitting smoke signals to alert even the taipan's own children.
Gazmin OKs purchase of six drones
Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin has approved an initial purchase of six drones, seven years after the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration had issued an executive order for such an acquisition.
But instead of placing the unmanned aerial vehicles under the intelligence services as had originally been envisioned by the GMA order, the defense department is placing the spy mini-planes under the control of the Philippine Marines.
A bidding has been calendared for January 6, with the DND valuing the aerial package, including "integrated logistics support," at P684.2 million.
Over at Malacanang, Peace Adviser Ging Deles has greenlighted a defense-related request to procure for her Mindanao monitoring team not only bullet-proof vests but curiously "radiation vests" to equip themselves with while out on the field.
Money-go-round
• Philippine Airlines will have the Manila-Darwin route all to itself by April 2014, after the Australian budget carrier Jetstar, citing poor traffic, decided to drop the nonstop service.
PAL is charging about P21,000 for a budget economy fare for the MNL-DRW-MNL route, as against about P15,000 from Jetstar.
The flag carrier flies three times a week to the Northern Australian port city.
• DBP president Gil Buenaventura has decided the 1,648 rank-and-file bank employees could use a fashion makeover, approving a P9,900 budget per uniform for each staffer.
The first round of bidding, opening of eligibility requirement documents from prospective bidders, will be held this Friday morning.
Heard through the grapevine
Taipan son Lucio Tan Jr. has widened his talent search all the way in Singapore to find a replacement for Eton Philippines chief operating officer Danilo Antonio, who was pirated by new Yolanda rehabilitation czar Panfilo Lacson as undersecretary.
E-mail: cocktales_tv5@yahoo.com
No comments:
Post a Comment