Vivant sets P67 billion investment plan through 2030

MANILA, Philippines — Positioning itself to become a major Filipino conglomerate, Vivant Corp. is ramping up its expansion with a planned investment pipeline of about P67 billion through 2030.

Vivant CEO Arlo Sarmiento said 90 percent of the total planned capital spending or P60 billion will be allocated to the energy business, while P7 billion will be invested in the water ventures.

“As we look toward 2030, we are laser-focused on our vision to establish Vivant as a premier power company with a robust footprint in the water sector,” Sarmiento said at the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting yesterday.

The bulk of Vivant’s planned energy investments will be channeled into renewable power projects as it shifts toward a more balanced and sustainable portfolio mix.

The listed utilities conglomerate is targeting a significant scale-up in its attributable power generation capacity to 1,000 megawatts by 2030, up from 471 MW at the end of 2025.

“On the energy side, we’re looking at starting heavy investments this year, but the heavier ones should be in 2027 and 2028,” Vivant Energy president Emil Andre Garcia told reporters yesterday.

In its water business, the company plans to invest around P7 billion to expand across the value chain, with the majority allocated to bulk water supply projects.

“For the water sector, it’s a sector that’s been largely neglected, and I think because of that, there’s a lot of room there to improve infrastructure,” Vivant Water president Jess Garcia said.

Looking ahead, Vivant’s next phase of expansion is anchored on its ambition to become a major power conglomerate by 2030, and ultimately a leading Philippine company by 2040.

Amid challenging market conditions, Sarmiento said the group remains “cautiously optimistic” about its growth prospects.

He added that the ongoing global oil crisis has also exposed the vulnerability of the country’s power system, given its heavy reliance on imported fuel.

“Our dependence on conventional energy sources has made us the most expensive, maybe next to Singapore, in terms of power costs,” the Vivant CEO said.

The Philippines has one of the most coal-dependent power grids in Southeast Asia, with coal accounting for over 60 percent of its power mix.