Meralco acquires 49% of San Miguel’s power unit in Bataan

Businessmen Manuel Pangilinan and Ramon Ang sealed their first joint venture in power generation, documents show.

Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed that Meralco Powergen Corp., a subsidiary of Pangilinan-led Manila Electric Co., acquired a 49-percent stake in Mariveles Power Generation Corp.

Mariveles Power is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SMC Global Power Holdings Inc., the power arm of San Miguel Corp. which is led by Ang.

SMC Global said MGen and Zygnet Prime Holdings Inc., a company headed by businessman Iñigo Zobel, subscribed to 2,500 and 102 common shares of MPGC, respectively. 

“As a result, SMC Global Power holds 49 percent of the outstanding capital stock of MPGC while MGen holds 49 percent and Zygnet 2 percent,” SMC Global Power said.

SMC Global did not provide the value of the transaction.  The deal was completed on June 16.

MPGC was formed to develop, construct, finance, own, operate and maintain a 4x150-megawatt circulating fluidized bed coal-fired power plant and associated facilities in Mariveles, Bataan.

The construction of the power plant is expected to be completed by 2019.

The joint venture partnership came after MPGC signed power supply agreements with Meralco.

Another SMC Global unit Central Luzon Premiere Power Corp. also signed a supply deal with Meralco for the delivery of up to 528 megawatts of electricity.

CLPPC intends to construct, own and operate a 600-MW circulating fluidized bed coal-fired power generating facility in Pagbilao, Quezon. The project is slated for completion by 2019.

Ang, who is the president of San Miguel, earlier said the two projects with a total capacity of 1,200 megawatts would cost a combined $2.4 billion.

Ang said in June, San Miguel was in advanced stage of negotiations with the group of Pangilinan for a possible joint venture in the development of a $10-billion international airport.

Ang said both parties would wait for the government to issue guidelines for the airport bidding before finalizing their joint venture partnership.

Aside from the airport project, San Miguel was also in talks with Pangilinan’s group for other big ticket projects the government planned to bid out in the future, including tollways and railway projects.

San Miguel in 2014 proposed to build a $10-billion modern international airport on a 1,600-hectare reclamation site along Manila Bay over a period of five to seven years.