Listed SP New Energy Corp. (SPNEC) moved to distance itself from Solar Philippines after reports of mass renewable contract terminations involving the renewable power firm of Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste.
SPNEC shares fell nearly 9 percent on Wednesday morning. The stock saw partial recovery during the session, although it was still trading down about 7 percent to P1.08 per share as of this writing.
SPNEC is a unit of tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan-backed Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
Management had previously indicated a rebrand could come later with the backdoor listing of certain renewable power assets, but it has yet to provide a definitive timeline.
Solar Philippines a shareholder, no impact on business operations
SPNEC said Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc. is a stockholder of the listed company.
SPNEC also disclosed it received a termination notice for a service contract covering its Sta. Rosa Project, which is the same project for which it filed a force majeure notice last year.
The company said the Sta. Rosa termination is being handled separately through its force majeure claim and ongoing discussions with the Department of Energy (DOE), and is not part of the P24 billion obligations tied to Solar Philippines’ cancelled Green Energy Auction contracts.
“Pending the outcome of said discussions and request for reconsideration, no adverse impact is expected on the overall business, operations, and financial condition of the company,” SPNEC said in the filing.
The DOE has terminated 17,904 Megawatt of auction contracts over the past two years, the bulk of which involved Solar Philippines.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
