Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 8) — The Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC) is confident that its possible investment in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) will lead to significant returns.
“Definitely, I’ve actually seen the numbers of SGP [Synergy Grid & Development Philippines Inc.] which consolidates the numbers of NGCP and it is a very profitable entity,” MIC president and chief executive officer Rafael Consing Jr. told CNN Philippines’ The Source on Monday when asked if investing to the NGCP will result to an optimal return on investment.
Consing earlier said he is open to the idea floated by House Speaker Martin Romualdez of having the MIC inject funds into the NGCP following last week’s widespread blackout that hit parts of Western Visayas.
The proposal is timely as Consing said energy is actually one of MIC’ s investment priorities.
He said they plan to focus on improving grid efficiency and upgrading transmission to create stability in the grid because of the amount of renewable energy that will come in.
“When you’ve got significant amounts of renewable power going into the grid, that creates volatility and NGCP, therefore, needs to ensure that significant amounts of auxiliary services to backup the grid exists and that requires a significant amount of capital,” Consing explained.
The MIC chief said NGCP’s current shareholders have the means, but this may not be enough to fund the improvements needed. A study will be conducted to determine the exact investment that will be sourced from the sovereign wealth fund, he said.
Consing said the board has yet to coordinate with the NGCP regarding this possible move. Before an investment is made, the MIC should first engage and determine the valuation at which the shareholders will allow entry of third party investors, he noted.
He said it may take 9 months to a year before a transaction is finalized.
