Lopezes to keep 3.9% Meralco stake

MANILA, Philippines - The Lopez family intends to keep what’s left of its stake in power utility giant Manila Electric Co., according to a top executive of the group.

In a briefing following the special shareholders meeting yesterday of Lopez-owned First Gen Corp., company chairman and chief executive officer Federico R. Lopez said the family would hold on to its remaining 3.9 percent stake, equivalent to a board seat in Meralco.

“There are no plans to sell it,” he said.

Lopez said the group remains bullish on the power sector especially as the economy is expected to grow further this year.

Meralco is currently growing its business and investing in new areas such as power generation aimed at enhancing shareholder value and providing efficient and upgraded services for the public.

With the remaining stake in the power firm, the Lopez family is seen to benefit from synergies with local infrastructure giant Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), which has raised its stake in Meralco to 48.02 percent following the purchase of 30 million additional shares at a price of P295 each.

The shares were acquired by MPIC from Lopez-led subsidiary First Philippine Utilities Corp. for a total of P8.85 billion.

Meralco is partly owned by another corporate giant, San Miguel Corp., whose holdings stand at about 27 percent.

The Lopez Group said it intends to use proceeds from the Meralco sale to continue growing its power business as it expects to deliver better results in 2012.

First Gen president Francis Giles Puno said the company may raise P5 billion to P10 billion through the issuance of preferred shares to fund its expansion and repay debt. The offering may take place in the second quarter of the year.

First Gen has earmarked P10 billion over a three-year period for its capital expenditures.