MANILA - DoubleDragon Properties Corp said Friday its shopping mall unit signed lease contracts worth P4.97 billion to host additional SM-branded supermarkets.

The company simultaneously signed 10-year lease contracts for 22 more SM Savemore Supermarkets in CityMalls expected to open this year, DoubleDragon told the stock exchange.

The agreement "is a testament to the value of what CityMall is providing to modern retail brands and the relevance of the platform we provide in their expansion into the next frontier of retail," DoubleDragon chief investment officer Hannah Yulo said.

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DoubleDragon currently has 28 malls, with 22 more outlets expected to be completed this year, DoubleDragon chair Edgar "Injap" Sia II said.

DoubleDragon said once all the planned 100 CityMalls are completed, the supermarket tenants alone can generate at least P20 billion in rental income during the first 10 years of operations.