In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp. said it bought 1.03 million shares on August 22 at P90 each, valuing the latest transaction at P93.1 million.
The purchase price reflects the terms of a December 2008 agreement that was stalled for 17 years by graft cases and legal disputes. With Meralco’s share price having surged since then, those shares are now worth around P565 million.
SMC stake valued at about P24 billion
This follows the August 14 acquisition of 43.23 million shares, also at P90 per share, bringing San Miguel’s total purchases under the revived agreement to 44.3 million shares, now valued at over P24 billion.
The original deal involved acquiring 46.6 million shares from Landbank but was frozen for over a decade as graft charges were pursued against former Landbank executives.
The Sandiganbayan acquitted the officials in June 2024, and the Supreme Court ordered enforcement of the purchase agreement in April 2024, paving the way for the staggered settlements to proceed.
SMC power arm is Meralco’s No. 4 shareholder
The latest tranche raises San Miguel’s stake in Meralco to about 3.93 percent.
This signals Ang’s return as a significant shareholder in the country’s largest power distributor, whose other major investors include Manuel V. Pangilinan’s group, the Gokongwei family’s JG Summit Holdings and the Lopez family’s First Philippine Holdings.
—Edited by Miguel R. Camus
