First Pacific hikes stake in Roxas Holdings to 50.9%

HONG Kong-based conglomerate First Pacific Co. Ltd. has boosted its interest in listed sugar group Roxas Holdings Inc. to 50.9 percent from 34 percent mostly by buying treasury shares worth P1.7 billion.

In a press statement on Friday, RHI said a total of 241.78 million treasury shares were sold to a unit of First Agri Holdings Corp. (FAHC), a subsidiary of First Pacific (FP), at P7 per share. Bundled with this was the purchase by FP- which is led by Filipino businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan – of 35 million shares held by RHI group chair Pedro Roxas and related parties, thus hiking FP’s stake to 50.9 percent.

Roxas & Company Inc. also increased its equity investments in RHI, buying 33.1 million shares or P232 million from the market to maintain 30 percent control.

The additional P1.7 billion equity raised RHI’s total equity by 25 percent from P6.93 billion to P8.63 billion.

In a statement, Roxas said RHI would use the additional equity for plant upgrades, possible mergers and/or acquisitions as well as to diversify its revenue and income base by expanding its ethanol business and developing power co-generation.

“FP and RHI will continue to work for the consolidation of the industry in order for it to survive. We need to immediately bring plant utilisation and efficiencies up,” Roxas said.