First Gen eyes nuclear energy as Philippines targets rollout

By Sheldeen Joy Talavera, Reporter

FIRST GEN CORP. is exploring opportunities in nuclear energy as the Philippines advances plans to introduce the technology into its power mix.

Jay Joel L. Soriano, vice-president and head of strategy and planning at First Gen, said the company is open to partnering with organizations that can help make nuclear energy commercially viable.

“We’ve looked at nuclear as well. I think when we looked at it, it’s almost unavoidable that we have to consider nuclear within our energy mix,” he said at a forum organized by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) on Wednesday.

He said the company is monitoring developments in nuclear energy generation to remain “abreast with the trends outside the Philippines.”

In particular, First Gen is interested in small modular reactors (SMRs), which can generate up to 300 megawatts (MW) of electricity.

The Philippines is targeting at least 1,200 MW of commercially operational nuclear power capacity. While the original target was 2032, the government is considering moving it to 2038 as it prepares for the auction of the country’s first nuclear power project.

The Department of Energy (DoE) plans to conduct the auction in June 2027, with a 10-year delivery program expected to begin by 2038 to allow the gradual integration of nuclear power into the national energy mix.

“If we are going to embark on that route, we want some level of certainty that there is a clear path towards commercialization. So I think those are the sticky points. But again, it will have to be a factor in our energy needs at some point,” Mr. Soriano said.

First Gen has been building its renewable energy portfolio as part of its energy transition strategy and currently supplies about 20% of the country’s renewable energy output.

The company has approximately 1,300 MW of renewable energy capacity from geothermal, solar, and wind assets.

HYDRO POWER DEAL DISPUTE
Meanwhile, the Lopez family majority bloc renewed its criticism of First Gen’s planned investment in the pumped storage hydro (PSH) portfolio of Prime Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (Prime Infra), arguing that the reduction in the company’s proposed stake lacks legal basis.

In a statement on Wednesday, the majority bloc said the reduction of First Gen’s stake in Prime Hydropower Energy, Inc. to 33% from 40% was not presented to the board and had no board mandate.

The statement came after First Gen’s independent directors — Alicia Rita L. Morales, Edgar O. Chua, and Manuel Francisco I. Ayala — said the investment had been “unanimously approved” by the company’s board.

The investment has become a point of contention in an ongoing dispute within the Lopez family. The majority bloc had previously sought the removal of First Gen Chairman Federico R. Lopez, citing a loss of trust and confidence.

First Gen initially agreed to acquire a 40% stake in Prime Infra’s pumped storage hydro assets for P75 billion. The transaction was later revised to a 33% stake valued at P62 billion.

The projects include the 600-MW Wawa pumped storage hydro project in Rizal and the 1,400-MW Pakil pumped storage hydro project in Laguna.

The independent directors said they had exercised “objective and independent judgment” in evaluating the projects.

However, the Lopez majority bloc questioned the reduction in First Gen’s stake, saying it diminished the company’s control while retaining substantial financial exposure.

“If the turnaround happened only after three weeks, does that mean directors were not given enough information to properly guide management? Didn’t they know First Gen’s liquidity position?” the bloc said.

The majority shareholders also questioned the reduction in ownership despite the expected returns from the investment.

“The shareholders must know. The regulators should step in to question this brazen move, the disclosures that were months late, the poison pills, and the cross-default that threatens even First Gen’s sister companies that are not involved in the deal,” they said.

First Gen had not issued a statement on the matter as of Wednesday.