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FIVE
foreign companies are interested in joining the
Lopez-owned First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC) in a
planned consortium that would acquire the 29-percent
stake of the government in the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
But
whether or not the government stake is still up for sale
remains to be a question, especially with the ongoing
squabble between the Lopez family and Government Service
Insurance System (GSIS) general manager Winston Garcia.
“Before,
government said they would put together the 29 percent
and sell. Now we don’t know what is available. Nobody is
saying that they are interested in selling,” said FPHC
president Elpidio Ibañez at the sidelines of the
company’s annual stockholders’ meeting Monday.
He said
the interested firms are known investment-fund managers
and energy companies.
“We have
been talking to them since last year. They have
expressed interest in acquiring Meralco shares, if
there’s an opportunity, and work with us,” he said.
Ibañez
declined to name the foreign investors, but said all of
these companies have conducted research about Meralco.
Asked
why these companies are so interested in the country’s
largest power distributor, Ibañez said, “Given
conditions today, utilities are generally defensive
stocks and investors are moving away from more risky and
lower yielding investments given that foreign interest
rates are also low.”
FPHC had
repeatedly said it does not have the financial
capability to solely acquire the government stake in
Meralco. The company now owns 33.4 percent of the
power-distribution firm.
Meanwhile, Meralco chairman Manuel M. Lopez denied all
the accusations hurled against him by Garcia and said he
has always treated the GSIS official “with dignity and
respect. I’ve never hit him below the belt. That’s not
my way.”
Top
management officials of Meralco will meet Tuesday with
President Arroyo to discuss the electricity rates.
“I’m not
included in that meeting. It only would be Messrs. Jesus
Francisco, Christian Monsod and Jose Vitug. I was not
invited,” Lopez said. (With Mia Gonzalez) |
