PSE suspends trading of SPNEC and Vulcan IN BRIEF

Krungsi, Mitsubishi UFJ

acquire Home Credit PH

CONSUMER finance company Home Credit Philippines announced Friday the entry of new shareholders following the completion of its acquisition by Krungsri, the fifth largest financial group in Thailand and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, a global financial leader from Japan at a base value of 406 million euros or P24.4 billion. Home Credit Philippines chief executive David Minol said the company has high hopes that with the support of Kungsri and MUFG, the financing company would sustain the growth momentum achieved in previous years.

“We are pleased to announce the handover of Home Credit Philippines to our new shareholders Krungsri and MUFG, both market leaders in the financial industry. Together with our new shareholders, we are opening the next chapter for Home Credit Philippines, building on the high performance that we have set over the past nine years. We are optimistic of our future together,” he said. He said the acquisition of Home Credit Philippines is a testament to the strong business it has established in the country and the growth opportunity that Krungsri and MUFG have seen for the company to further expand and maintain its dominance in the local consumer finance market. Othel V. Campos

BOC topped collection target of P72.3b in May

Parent Firm

FAR EASTERN Holdings Inc., a private company owned by the family of San Miguel Corp. president Ramon Ang, is acquiring 45 million common shares in listed Top Frontier Investment Holdings Inc. for P10.86 billion.

TFIHI said in a stock exchange filing Friday its board of directors approved FEHI’s subscription to 45 million shares priced at P241.42 apiece.

The acquisition price is more than double TFIHI’s closing price of P111 on Thursday. The shares, which will be listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange, will be paid in cash on June 30, 2023.

The acquisition will increase Ang’s ownership in TFIHI whose main assets include a 61.7-percent interest in conglomerate SMC and 100-percent stake in mining firm Clariden Holdings Inc. Ang’s other private companies, Privado Holdings Corp. and Master Year Ltd., also hold 11.07-percent and 14.96-percent stake in TFIHI, respectively.

The board of TFIHI also approved to move the company’s annual stockholders meeting to Aug. 3 from July 11 to include the listing of the shares for approval in the agenda.

TFIHI issued in December 2022 over P50 billion worth of redeemable non-voting perpetual securities to FEHI.

The share price of TFIHI climbed 8.1 percent Friday to close at P120.

Jenniffer B. Austria

1,200-MW Ilijan gas plant resumes power supply

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Department of Energy said Friday the 1,200-megawatt Ilijan natural gas power plant in Batangas resumed supplying power to the Luzon grid on June 1.

It said that with the liquefied natural gas supplied by Linseed Field Corp.’s LNG terminal, the Ilijan natural gas power is now up and running.

“With the delivery of LNG, Ilijan is now supplying power to the grid beginning June 1, 2023, and is expected to improve its contribution to the energy supply in the Luzon grid, especially in the coming months,” the department said.

The Ilijan plant’s power generation capacity is now at 590 MW and is expected to reach full capacity next week, San Miguel Corp. officials said.

“It will provide stable, reliable, 1,200 MW of baseload power to the grid so it will avoid red or yellow alerts,” SMC president Ramon Ang said. The DOE also welcomed the recent develop- ments on the LNG terminal of First Gen Corp. in Batangas.

“These facilities enable the importation of LNG into the country to support the continuous fuel supply of our gas-fired power plants,” the agency said.

It said the LNG facility constructed by FGEN LNG Corp. scheduled its first LNG cargo delivery window in the later part of the year.

“This will add to and secure the supply of natural gas for its power plants in Batangas,” it said.

The DOE also welcomed the partnership of FGEN and Prime Infrastructure Capital Inc. on the lease and operation of FGEN LNG terminal.

“All these developments are positive signals reflecting the continuous interest of the private sector in investing in critical infrastructures that will allow the country to import and utilize imported LNG and complement the available gas from the Malampaya reservoir to meet the country’s growing energy demand,” it said.

REVENUE collections by the Bureau of Customs reached P77.793 billion in May, surpassing its target of P72.350 billion for the month by P5.443 billion or 7.52 percent.

It said in a statement Friday the May collections were 17.36 percent or P11.505 billion better than a year ago.

This resulted in total revenue collections in the first five months of P359.175 billion, exceeding the target of P345.943 billion by P13.232 billion or 3.82 percent. This was also 12.06 percent or P38.661 billion higher than a year earlier.

The BOC attributed the improved collection performance to strategic initiatives aligned with Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio’s five-point priority program.

The first is the intensified anti-smuggling measures that have curtailed illicit activities and resulted in the seizure of contraband valued at over P19 billion.Julito G. Rada

PNR suspends service from Alabang to Calamba

THE daily trips of the Philippine National Railways between Alabang and Calamba route will be temporarily suspended starting July 2, 2023 to give way for the construction of the North-South Commuter Railway, according to the Department of Transportation.

The agency said only two trips would be affected by the route’s closure—the 4:38 a.m. trip and 7:56 p.m. trip. About 467 commuters take each trip daily.

DOTr Undersecretary for railways Cesar Chavez said an elevated, double-track and electrified train system would be built directly above the existing PNR tracks, speeding up the construction of the NSCR by eight months.

The new NSCR system will replace the PNR’s present street level, single track and diesel locomotive set-up.

The agency said while the NSCR is being constructed along the route, the following PNR stations would be temporarily unavailable: Alabang, Muntinlupa, San Pedro, Biñan, Sta. Rosa, Cabuyao, Mamatid and Calamba. Darwin G. Amojelar

BlueFloat acquires wind energy contracts in PH

SPANISH firm BlueFloat Energy announced Friday its market entry in the Philippines through the acquisition of wind energy service contracts for four sites in the Philippines—Central Luzon, South Luzon, Northern Luzon and Southern Mindoro.

“We are thrilled to bring BlueFloat Energy’s expertise and experience in offshore wind energy to the Philippines. We believe that by tapping into the country’s vast clean energy potential, we can make a significant contribution towards reducing carbon emissions and fostering a sustainable future for generations to come,” BlueFloat Energy Carlos Martin chief executive said during his visit to the country to announce the company’s market entry to the Philippines.

Offshore wind has emerged as one of the game changers in the global energy transition, providing scaled solutions to governments looking to shift towards renewable energy sources while achieving energy security.

The Philippine offshore wind roadmap released in April 2022 by the Department of Energy and the World Bank Group estimated that the Philippines has the potential to install 21 gigawatt-hours of offshore wind power by 2040.

BlueFloat Energy has been working for more than 18 months on unlocking this offshore wind potential by exploring the development of floating wind. Alena Mae S. Flores

Butler: Heat need to match Nuggets’ physicality

DENVER—Miami star Jimmy Butler called on his team-mates to match Denver’s physicality after the Nuggets overpowered the Heat to win game one of the NBA Finals on Thursday.

A Denver side inspired by the towering figure of Nikola Jokic proved too strong for Miami, leading almost from start to finish at the Ball Arena to clinch a 104-93

Jokic later said Denver had been determined to land the “first punch” of the series, and Butler admitted Miami would need to up their physicality over the rest of the series.

“They came out with a lot of physicality, and we have to be able to match that,” Butler said.

“They did their job on their home floor, you have to say that, but we will be ready.

“We will adjust, and we will do some things very differently and come out here and be ready to give more for