Office space for O&O firms in Cebu to double

Posted September 22, 2008

CEBU CITY—Available space for offshoring and outsorucing (O and O) firms in Cebu are set to double by the end of 2008 due mainly to laid out expansion plans of many existing locators and the scheduled entry of new players.

According to a report of property- management firm Colliers International, an additional 160,000 square meters of space will be available soon, to add to the existing 180,000-sq-m space in Cebu.

According to Colliers investment sales director Ieyo de Guzman, Cebu’s deep pool of human resource makes it ideal for outsourcing firms to come here.

“Cebu remains a destination because of its vast pool of qualified human resources. It is a melting spot of students and workers from nearby islands and is backed by its top universities,” Colliers investment sales director Ieyo de Guzman said.

“Almost half of this space under development  has already been committed to locators.”

Lease spaces in Cebu also continue to be very attractive to locators, she said.

Lease rates in Cebu are still a fraction of that in Makati. While Makati Central Business District  spaces fetch  around P1,100 per sq m, Cebu’s prime properties still hover by around P400 per sq m.

Although prices in Cebu have reached a “plateau,” Colliers Cebu manager Rodufo Lafradez said an adjustment may be due soon.

“A minor correction will indicate that the developers are realistic,” de Guzman added.

Most of the projects are in Cebu City, and the Asiatown IT Park has already been committed to existing locators.

But new sites are also emerging, in the mostly still empty 200-hectare Mandaue reclamation area, the Cebu City north reclamation area, and even deep down town in Fuente Osmeña circle. Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) buildings are up, or if not already under construction.

Robinland Inc. is one of the developers which took the unusual route and built its  eight-story BPO building at the Mandaue reclamation area.

Robinland Inc. vice president for operations and business development Jun Sa-a said his company saw the potential of Mandaue City with the vast space available for business and the friendly atmosphere in city hall.

“We see this part of Mandaue City developing into a business center, so we want to be here first,” Sa-a said.

Robinland will not be alone in the  reclaimed property, however, as it already hosts the Cebu International Convention Center, Parkmall and even the Cebu Doctor’s University, which has created a township with several dormitory, retail and support buildings around the campus.

Source: Business Mirror, September 22, 2008
By Wilfredo Rodolfo III