ICTSI eyes further overseas expansion

Enrique Razon-controlled port manager International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) is planning on further expanding overseas through new acquisitions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the US and the Asia Pacific. “We are watching Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam in Asia,” Razon told reporters after the company's annual stockholders' meeting. “Among the three, we are watching Myanmar, but there is no plan to expand there right now. Cambodia is the most promising, but the government has not decided yet to privatize.” Razon added that ICTSI will spending $500 million—less than the previously announced amount of $550 million—to fund its operations, particularly terminal development projects in Argentina, Mexico and construction activities in Colombia and in Davao. In 2012, ICTSI spent $465.6 million of its capital expenditure budget of $550 million on development and expansion projects in Manila, Ecuador, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. This year, ICTSI Treasury BV raised $400 million as part of its $750 million medium term note program for its financing requirements this year. “In my opinion, unless there’s some game-changing acquisition, we will stick with debt. If we find a large acquisition that requires us to raise equity beyond debt capacity, then we will,” said ICTSI vice president and treasurer Rafael Consing. The port operator's net income grew 10 percent year on year in 2012 to $144 million, as its consolidated volume handled grew 7.5 percent to 5.628 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) from 5.233 million TEUs. This meant a 10-percent rise in revenues from port operations to $729.3 million. The volume from six key terminal operations—in Manila, Brazil, Poland, Ecuador, Madagascar and China—amounted to 4.109 million TEUs, 73 percent of ICTSI’s consolidated volume. — BM, GMA News