Tycoon Pangilinan-Led Manila Electric Takes Control Of Energy Company That’s Building A $3.5 Billion Solar Farm

Meralco PowerGen (MGen)—a unit of Manila Electric, which counts tycoon Manuel Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments and billionaire Lance Gokongwei’s JG Summit among its biggest shareholder—has taken majority stake in SP New Energy, which is building a $3.5 billion solar farm north of the Philippine capital.

MGen has acquired an additional 11.6% stake in SP New Energy for 7.5 billion pesos, bringing its stake in the renewable energy company to 50.5%, SP New Energy’s parent company Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings said in a statement. The latest transaction brings MGen’s total investment in SP New Energy to 27.9 billion pesos.

Under the deal, Solar Philippines said MGen paid an initial 6.7 billion pesos on Tuesday for the additional 5.6 billion shares, with the balance of 800 million pesos to be paid upon “the completion of the planned entry of another investor into Terra Solar Philippines.”

Terra Solar, a wholly owned unit of SP New Energy, is building a solar farm in Nueva Ecija and Bulacan, provinces north of Manila. The project can generate 3,500 megawatts of electricity when completed. It will also have a battery facility that can store up to and 4,000 kilowatt hours of electricity.

“The Terra Solar project remains on track for key milestones, with significant progress anticipated in the coming months,” SP New Energy CEO Emmanuel Rubio was quoted as saying in Solar Philippines’ statement. Solar Philippines was founded by entrepreneur Leandro Leviste, a Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 alum from 2016.

Metro Pacific Investments—the biggest shareholder in Manila Electric—first invested into SP New Energy in May 2023. The conglomerate, which has interests in healthcare, infrastructure, real estate, telecommunications and utilities, counts Indonesia billionaire Antoni Salim’s Hong Kong-based First Pacific among its shareholders. Pangilinan, also a key stakeholder of Metro Pacific, is chairman or both Metro Pacific and Manila Electric.

JG Summit, another shareholder of Manila Electric, has interests in airlines, banking, food manufacturing, hotels, petrochemicals and real estate. The business was founded by the late billionaire John Gokongwei in 1954 as a corn starch factory. After Gokongwei passed away in 2019, his six children—Lance, Robina, Lisa, Faith, Hope and Marcia—inherited his fortune. The siblings had a combined net worth of $1.9 billion, placing them at No. 11 on the list of the Philippines’ 50 Richest when it was last month.