VANTAGE ENERGY, an affiliate retail electricity supplier (RES) of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), has entered into a power supply agreement with the Gokongwei Group to serve 35 of its key properties nationwide.
The retail electricity supply deal covers facilities of Robinsons Land Corp., Robinsons Supermarket Corp., and Universal Robina Corp. (URC), with a portion of the contracted power to be sourced from renewable energy, the company said in a media release on Monday.
Robinsons Land is the property arm of JG Summit Holdings, Inc., the flagship conglomerate of the Gokongwei Group. URC is engaged in food and beverage manufacturing, while Robinsons Supermarkets, a subsidiary of Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc., operates a nationwide supermarket chain.
“This commitment to renewable energy empowers the Gokongwei Group to wholeheartedly pursue our sustainability targets, knowing that we have strong, forward-thinking partners aligned with our environmental stewardship goals,” JG Summit President and Chief Executive Officer Lance Y. Gokongwei said.
Vantage Energy, the first affiliate RES of Meralco, supplies electricity to contestable customers outside the power distributor’s franchise area.
“Our partnership spans over half a decade now, with contestable properties recently added — some of which are already transitioning to renewable energy supply. This expansion reflects our aligned commitment to transforming shared values into meaningful, measurable progress toward a sustainable future,” Vantage Energy President Ernesto M. Cabral said.
Meanwhile, Meralco’s local RES unit MPower recently expanded its contract with the Gokongwei Group to deliver electricity to several of its major facilities in Luzon.
MPower supplies power to contestable customers, including large corporations within Meralco’s franchise area. It currently holds over a 25% share of the Competitive Retail Electricity Market (CREM) within Meralco’s coverage area.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of the PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
