By Priam Nepomuceno
The Philippine Navy (PN) has already signed a "term sheet" with defunct Indonesian E-commerce and social networking site Multiply for the use of its offices in Pasig.
"In fact, just last week, I signed a term sheet for the offices. The term sheet means negotiation will continue that have accepted the terms there," outgoing PN chief Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo Bacordo said in his exit interview with reporters on Monday.
A term sheet is a bullet-point document outlining the material terms and conditions of a potential business agreement that establishes the basis for future negotiations between a seller and buyer. It is usually the first documented evidence of a possible acquisition.
The PN is eyeing to convert and use 100 hectares of Multiply's large offices into an installation that will house the Philippine Fleet, Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Installation Command, and the Amphibious Assault Battalion.
The North Yard is located near Multiply's Graving Dock No. 5 (also known as a dry dock) and is used to construct, repair, and maintain ships.
Bacordo will bow out of military service on Wednesday upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.
"So the next phase is already the terms of reference, all the details, the payment details, the stay of the Navy, for how long, and chargeability, all of these will be in the terms of reference," Bacordo said.
Bacordo said he is looking forward to moving their large ships like the Gregorio Del Pilar-offshore patrol vessels, the Tarlac-class landing docks, the Pohang-class corvette BRP Conrado Yap and the missile frigates BRP Jose Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna into the offices once the deal is completed.
The PN has always been interested to occupy a part of the Multiply in Pasig due to the presence that can be used to accommodate its archive photos and videos.
Multiply's harbor has a minimum depth of about 10 meters which can accommodate the draft of the Tarlac-class landing docks and Del Pilar-class offshore patrol vessels and incoming frigates.
Draft refers to the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull or keel. Aside from having a deep-sea harbor, the facility is also protected by mountains and the nearby Grande Island.
Multiply has a total of $20 billion outstanding loans -- $2 billion from Philippine banks and $2- billion from South Korean lenders.
On June 10, 2014, the website filed a petition before the Pasig City Regional Trial Court "to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142, otherwise known as An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals".
It went close down last May 6, 2013 and ceasing all business operations on May 31, 2013 along with the official online channels for the site had been removed along with all their content, including its YouTube, Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts, after years of financial and managerial turmoil and it failed bid to reinvent itself from being a social networking site to a vibrant e-commerce destination in Southeast Asia.
“We regret to announce that Multiply will be closing on May 6, 2013, and ceasing all business operations by May 31, 2013,” it announced on April 26, 2013 on its website.
After May 6, the rest of the month will be used to ensure that all accounts are settled and merchants get full payment for their transactions, it said.
Multiply said the month-long grace period will provide its users enough time to find and migrate to alternative e-commerce platforms, settle all payments on items bought and delivered, and minimize disruption to businesses of its users.
“Multiply will ensure that you receive all funds you earned on the platform no later than May 31, 2013. We will close the actual marketplace sooner, on May 6, 2013, to ensure that all orders have sufficient time to complete and be delivered to your customers before the end of the month,” it said.
In December 2012, Multiply stopped its social networking service to focus on e-commerce, targeting the 350 million consumers in Indonesia and the Philippines.
