San Miguel Corp (SMC), president, Ramon Ang said that they are planning to sell in 2009 some of their shareholdings in their food and packaging businesses in order to fund their investments in heavy industries. They will however still maintain control of these subsidiaries by having 51% worth of shares in them.
Just recently it was announced that Japanese beer maker, Kirin, would buy some of SMC’s shares in their Brewery business. Businessweek has a great article on the relationship of Kirin and SMC with regards to the deal they are about to embark on.
The funds from the sales would be used to pay off long term debt ($923 million) as well as fund their expansion plans in new businesses.
San Miguel has been aggressive in expanding into the energy sector by recently acquiring a 27% stake in the Lopez energy distribution firm Manila Electric Co (MERALCO) as well as purchasing the majority holdings in Philippine Oil Refiner, Petron Corp, from the Ashmore Group.
SMC subsidiary, San Miguel Energy Corp., has also announced that they are planning to bid for the 620-megawatt Bataan Combined Cycle Power Plant in Manila Bay.
Previously it was just the Aboitiz and Lopez’s dominating the energy landscape of the Philippines. With each group holding specific fief’s in the Philippines. The Lopez’s dominating geothermal and the Luzon grid. While the Aboitiz’s had Visayas, Mindanao and the Hyrdo Electric grids. Now with the entry of San Miguel we see another Ilonggo group, in the form of the SMC Cojuangco’s joining the fray.
Ilonggo is the term used to describe the people and language of the inhabitants of Antique, Aklan, Capiz, Iloilo, Negros and Guimaras.
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Category: Oil, Petron, San Miguel
