First Holdings investing P1B in manufacturing unit

Lopez-led First Philippine Holdings Corp. is beefing up its manufacturing businesses with the infusion of up to P1 billion into First Philec group.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange Friday, FPH said its board approved the investment of P1 billion or its US dollar equivalent into First Philippine Electric Corp. (First Philec) and First Philec Inc. (FPI) in the form of loan, equity or advances.

First Philec serves as an intermediate holding company for all manufacturing investments of its parent company FPH. FPI, which is engaged in manufacturing transformers, is a subsidiary of First Philec.

Through First Philec, FPH intends to grow its investments in manufacturing to provide a more robust backbone to the country’s economy, one that is founded on technological competitiveness and increased ability to add value to products and manufacturing services for the global market.

First Philec is a pioneer and the leader in transformer solutions in the Philippines. It has provided transformers to the country’s power utilities, commercial and industrial businesses for more than 45 years. The company is also the largest manufacturer of amorphous transformers—or those found in electric grids—in Southeast Asia.

FPH has interests in power generation, manufacturing operations, construction and real estate development. It also has a residual 3.95 percent stake in Manila Electric Co., the country’s largest electricity distributor.