Property developer Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) is raising its capital expenditures (capex) by over a third and will launch P100 billion worth of new projects this year, optimistic about market recovery amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

In a virtual media briefing Wednesday, ALI President and Chief Executive Officer Bobby Dy said the company plans to spend P88 billion in 2021 from P63.7 billion the previous year.

“For 2021, our goal is to start our V-shape recovery. We think it will be a journey that will take two to three years to bring ALI back to its performance in 2019 as well as to set the stage for growth levels that we have experienced in the past,” he said.

Dy said the economy has gradually opened and indicators are starting to improve that will be further boosted once the Covid-19 vaccine is available.

Bulk or 44 percent of this year’s planned capex will be used to expand residential developments, 26 percent for land acquisition, 13 percent for estate development, 6 percent for malls, 5 percent for offices, 3 percent for hotels and resorts, and another 3 percent for other projects, he added.

On launches, Dy said ALI will introduce to the market projects across all brands with focus on Avida and Alveo.

“In terms of location, close to half of these (projects) will be in the Metro Manila area where we are still seeing most of the demand to come from,” he said.

By type of projects, Dy said 62 percent of these launches comprise vertical or condominiums, 37 percent are horizontal or subdivisions, and about 1 percent for leisure.

“For property development, we see sustained demand across all market segments. Actually, we are quite surprised with the resilience of the residential sector given the magnitude of the decline in our GDP (gross domestic product),” he added.

ALI reported a whopping 74-percent decline in net income to P8.7 billion last year from P33.2 billion in 2019, amid the severe impact of Covid-19.

It also recorded a 43-percent drop in consolidated revenues to P96.3 billion from P168.8 billion a year ago.

The company sustained the momentum for recovery from the third to the fourth quarter 2020, however, recording a 49-percent growth in total revenues quarter-on-quarter to P33 billion and a 28-percent jump in net income to P2.4 billion for the period.

“There was no escaping the major disruption caused by the pandemic in 2020, but our company’s performance in the latter part of the year was encouraging and provides a baseline for our recovery plans moving forward,” Dy added.