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Filipino Fund, Inc. sets stockholders’ meeting via remote communication

NOTICE OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’ MEETING
OF
FILIPINO FUND, INC.

Please take notice that the 2021 Annual Stockholders’ Meeting (“ASM”) of Filipino Fund, Inc. (the “Company”), will be held on May 11, 2021 (Tuesday) at 9:00 in the morning via remote communication under the platform of Zoom Video Communications.  The virtual ASM is necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic situation where physical gatherings are highly discouraged.

The Agenda for the ASM shall be as follows:

  1. Calling of meeting to order
  2. Certification of notice
  3. Determination and declaration of quorum
  4. Approval of the minutes of the Annual Stockholders’ Meeting held on September 30, 2020
  5. Presentation and approval of the Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2020
  6. Approval and  confirmation  of all  acts, proceedings and resolutions of the Board of Directors, Officers, Committees, and the Fund Manager during the past year
  7. Appointment of External Auditor for calendar year 2021
  8. Election of the Board of Directors
  9. Other Business
  10. Adjournment

The Minutes of the 2020 ASM is available for examination at the website of the Company at https://www.filipinofund.com.ph. 

The record date shall be on April 8, 2021 for the purpose of determining the list of stockholders of the Company who are entitled to vote at the 2021 ASM.

The Company will allow attendance only by remote communication and voting in absentia, subject to validation procedures.

Stockholders who will participate in the ASM by remote communication should pre-register at https://www.filipinofund.com.ph/news/registration on or before May 6, 2021.  Successful registrants will receive an email invitation with a complete guide on how to join the ASM and how to cast votes in absentia.  For any registration concerns, please contact corporatesecretary@filipinofund.com.ph. Please refer to the Definitive Information Statement on the guidelines on attendance by remote communication and voting in absentia which is posted on the website of the Company at https://www.filipinofund.com.ph. Only stockholders who have successfully registered within the prescribed period, together with the stockholders who voted in absentia and by proxy, will be included in the determination of quorum.

Proxies, in the form provided by the Company, must be scanned and emailed to the Company’s Corporate Secretary at corporatesecretary@filipinofund.com.ph not later than April 30, 2021. The proxies shall be validated on May 6, 2021. The Corporate Secretary’s decision shall be final and binding on the shareholders, and those not settled during the proxy validation shall be deemed waived and may no longer be raised. 

Stockholders may send their questions about the ASM and the Company to its Fund Manager at gfabad@abcapital.com.ph and/or corporatesecretary@filipinofund.com.ph. 

Pursuant to SEC Notice dated April 20, 2020, the Stockholders may examine the Definitive Information Statement, Management Report, and SEC Form 17A at the Company’s website and through the PSE Edge Portal.

There will be an audio and video recording of the ASM.  All votes cast shall be validated by the Stock and Transfer Agent, Stock Transfer Service, Inc.

Mandaue City, Philippines, March 26, 2021.

For the Board of Directors,

ATTY. VINCENT E. TOMANENG
Corporate Secretary

BSP requires banks to report ‘reputational’ risks

REUTERS

Philippine lenders should be on guard against any “reputational risks” that could potentially impact their financial standing and affect stakeholder confidence, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said on Friday.

In a statement, the central bank said all BSP-supervised financial institutions (BSFIs) will be required to report within five calendar days from determining any incident affecting its reputation. This includes any issues raised on social media platforms that may affect its stakeholders and “lead to a full-blown crisis if not responded to in a timely and effective manner,” the BSP added.

The Monetary Board approved guidelines on reputational risk management, outlining the supervisory requirements for BSFIs on “identification, assessment, and management of reputational risks that are commensurate to their size, nature, and complexity of operations, overall risk profile, and systemic importance.”

“As the financial sector continues to evolve and face challenges arising from digital disruption and stiffer competition, financial institutions must be increasingly sensitive to, and vigilant in addressing potentially more damaging reputation events,” BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno said in a statement.

Mr. Diokno noted that if these reputational threats are not managed properly, these may lead to “financial losses, negative publicity, and loss of stakeholder confidence, any of which could have a lasting debilitating impact on the institution.”

Separately, BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier said banks can decide on the tools they will use for monitoring reputational risks.

“We leave it to the banks to develop their own way of assessing or gauging their reputational risk exposure,” Ms. Fonacier said in a text message.

Financial institutions are free to retain existing measures or to apply new tools to identify and assess reputational risks relevant to their business and industry.

“For us in the BSP, we assess this along with the other risks such as credit, market, liquidity and operational risk. All of these assessments will feed into the SAFr (Supervisory Assessment Framework),” she added.

The SAFr is a bank rating system adopted by the BSP since January which links the systemic importance and risk profile of a financial institution to the formulation of respective supervisory plans for each of them.

The central bank will give BSP-supervised institutions a year to fully comply with the guidelines on reputational risk management.

“In cases of operational risk events, major cyber-related incidents and/or disruption of financial services and operations, or liquidity shortfall, BSP-supervised financial institutions shall comply with the notification/reporting requirements prescribed under existing regulations,” the central bank said.

Circular No. 112 was also released by the BSP on Thursday, which tightened know-your employee processes for banks through stricter hiring process and performance management. This requires banks to use BSP records to screen applicants and also laid down red flags on bankers’ behaviors and records.

Last year, the central bank disqualified two bank employees from working in the industry – one from BDO Unibank, Inc. and another from the Bank of the Philippine Islands – after the two were found to be involved in issuing fake documents in relation to the $2.1-billion Wirecard scandal. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

Citigroup to exit retail banking in Philippines

A general view of the Citibank headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia September 15, 2020. -- REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng

Citigroup, Inc. will leave its consumer banking business in 13 Asia-Pacific markets, including the Philippines, but continue to maintain a corporate banking presence.

“As a result of the ongoing refresh of our strategy, we have decided that we are going to double down on wealth. We will operate our consumer banking franchise in Asia and EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) solely from four wealth centers, Singapore, Hong Kong, UAE (United Arab Emirates) and London,” Citi Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jane Fraser said in a statement on Thursday.

Apart from the Philippines, the banking giant is planning to exit its consumer banking businesses in Australia, Bahrain, China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. It will retain its institutional clients group within the affected countries.

“Asia Pacific is an integral part of our global strategy, and a key driver of our growth and value proposition. We will continue to invest in our network across the region and deliver Citi’s unique global capabilities to clients across all our markets,” Citi Asia Pacific CEO Peter Babej said.

Citi set up shop in the Philippines in 1902. It currently has over 8,000 employees working in its corporate and retail banking units, and service centers in the country.

Citi Philippines CEO & Country Officer Aftab Ahmed said it will be business as usual in the meantime.

“There is no immediate change to our operations, and no immediate impact to our colleagues as a result of this announcement. In the interim, we will continue to serve our clients with the same care, empathy and dedication as we do today,” Mr. Ahmed said in the statement.

Citi’s first quarter income results showed revenues from Asia operations decreased 7% to $4.074 billion from $4.4 billion in the first three months of 2020.

Revenues from its global consumer banking in the region including some units in EMEA dropped 9% to $1.601 billion from $1.751 billion a year earlier.

“Asia global consumer banking revenues of $1.6 billion declined 9% on a reported basis and 12% in constant dollars, reflecting lower card revenues, as well as lower deposit spreads, partially offset by strong investments revenues and deposit growth,” Citi said. — L.W.T. Noble

Philippines commits to 75% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030

The Philippines has committed to a 75% greenhouse gas emission reduction and avoidance by 2030, as part of its commitment to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte has approved the Philippines’ first Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) which aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 75% by 2030, the Finance department said on Friday.

The five-page NDC details the country’s goal of modernizing and pursuing low carbon and resilient development for the agriculture, waste, industry, transport and energy sectors over a ten-year period beginning 2020.

“The target is based on the country’s projected business-as-usual cumulative economy-wide emission of 3,340.3 metric tons (MT) of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) for the same period,” the Department of Finance said in a statement.

Of the 75% target, some 72.29% will be conditional or dependent on the support of climate finance, technologies and capacity development which is set to be provided by developed countries. The rest of the target will be implemented through domestic resources.

NDCs are at the heart of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, which seeks to limit the global temperature rise to preferably below 1.5 degrees Celsius. NDCs detail the efforts of countries in reducing emissions and adapting to the impacts of climate change.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, who is the chairman-designate of the Climate Change Commission (CCC), described the country’s NDC target as “ambitious.” The CCC facilitated the formulation of the NDC.

“The NDC will be our tool to upgrade our economy by adopting modern and low carbon technologies and approaches that would help mitigate the climate crisis and make our economy more resilient and our growth sustainable,” he was quoted as saying.

Based on the NDC registry of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Philippines is the latest country that has submitted its NDC, as of Thursday.

‘ACHIEVABLE’

Nazrin Camille D. Castro, manager of the Philippine branch of global non-profit The Climate Reality Project, said that the NDC will enable the country to unlock new sources of climate finance “that will help the just and equitable transition away from coal, oil, gas, and fossil fuel-based energy systems.”

“The 75% GHG reduction and avoidance target is achievable if the government could come up with formidable and bankable climate change mitigation and adaptation projects that will enable us to access international climate finance mechanisms such as the Green Climate Fund,” Ms. Castro told BusinessWorld in an e-mail interview on Friday.

She added the country’s ability to reach the NDC target depends on the public and private sector’s efforts in building back better, an opportunity which the global health emergency has presented.

Albert A. Magalang, Chief of Climate Change Service at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said that the target is “high and ambitious”, but its fulfillment will mostly depend on support from other countries.

“The achievement of the Philippines’ 75% target would mainly depend on the support and the means of implementation that will be provided to the country as most of the mitigation target is conditional,” Mr. Magalang told BusinessWorld in an e-mail interview on Friday.

“The global health emergency may affect the level of support that will be provided from the developed countries but on the other hand, the global emissions may have also (been) reduced due to low economic activity during the pandemic,” he said, in response to a question on whether the country can reach its target given the pandemic.

Meanwhile, environment group Greenpeace Philippines described the target as “underwhelming.”

“It’s disappointing that despite strong calls from the public and environmental groups, the government barely made changes from the underwhelming target of 75% conditional and 2.71 percent unconditional emissions reduction by 2030,” Greenpeace campaigner Khevin Yu said, referring to the draft presented during the 2nd NDC Multistakeholder Consultation held in February.

“With unambitious plans for carbon-intensive sectors, the commitment does not reflect the urgency needed to address the climate emergency,” he added.

On Friday, the DoF said that crafting the NDC followed a “rigorous” process, which included economic modeling analyses, expert reviews and consultations with various stakeholders from the public, private and civil society sectors.

DoH says COVID fatality rate in capital at 1.5%, not 5.36%

A health worker prepares a bed inside a temporary medical tent at the Go Belmonte Super Health Center and Lying-in Clinic on April 14, intended for patients who are about to give birth but awaiting either the result or swabbing for a coronavirus test. -- PHILSTAR/MICHAEL VARCAS

The Department of Health (DoH) on Friday said the case fatality rate in Metro Manila is almost 1.5% during the past two weeks, lower than the 5.36% reported by the OCTA Research Team on Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Rosario S. Vergeire, in a virtual briefing, said, “As of April 15, our case fatality rate in NCR (National Capital Region) is 1.46%. We compute the case fatality rate based on the number of deaths from this specific disease, which is the COVID-19, over the number of confirmed cases.”

OCTA said the 5.36% fatality rate from March 28 to April 13 was almost thrice the 1.82% recorded from March 1 to 27. It said this could be attributed to the “overwhelmed” healthcare system and the more transmissible coronavirus variants infecting patients.

The Health department on Friday reported an additional 10,726 cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), bringing the total to 914,971.

New recoveries were at 650 for a total of 705, 757, while deaths reached 15,738 with an additional 145 who died.

Of the total reported cases, 193,476 are active, of which 96% are mild, 2.9% are asymptomatic., 0.5% are severe, 0.4% are critical, and 0.30% are moderate.

Healthcare capacity in the capital continues to be at high usage with 84% of ICU beds occupied.

Ward beds were at 72% utilization while 63% of isolation beds were in use. Around 64% of ventilators are currently in use.

Meanwhile, Ms. Vergeire said the DoH continues to disburse funds for the premiums and benefits of healthcare frontliners.

The DoH said it has so far paid a total of P1.6 billion in special risk allowances (SRA) and active hazard duty pay (AHDP) to healthcare workers.

Around 60,449 and 56,099 healthcare workers from Metro Manila were paid their SRA and AHDP, respectively.

“We make sure here in the DoH that their salary and benefits are given on time and completely,” she said.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte issued Administrative Order No. 28 last year, which gives public health sector workers an SRA that is computed based on the number of days that they rendered duty. — Gillian M. Cortez

‘Run, Sara, Run’: Is Duterte’s daughter playing her father’s game?

DAVAO CIO

THE daughter of Philippine leader Rodrigo R. Duterte says there’s no chance she’ll run for the presidency next year. Her father says the presidency is no job for a woman.

But few are convinced by either of them as campaigns grow to back Sara Duterte-Carpio, 42, to succeed the autocratic and capricious president whose war on drugs killed thousands and whose embrace of China has convulsed historic ties with Washington.

“It is the clamour of the people that will make her run,” said Mar Masanguid, who led the movement behind the hugely popular 76-year-old Duterte’s last minute presidential bid in 2016 and has now founded a group to back Sara Duterte.

Sara Duterte’s image is as down-to-earth as that of her father in a country where tough plays well: she once punched a court official who challenged her; she rides big motorbikes; her children are nicknamed Sharkie, Stingray and Stonefish.

Opinion polls show her far ahead of other potential candidates for the 2022 election when Duterte must step down after one six-year term.

But Sara Duterte told Reuters she had thought carefully and decided not to try to extend the political dynasty to the presidency after succeeding her father as mayor of the southern city of Davao.

“I made a chart where I listed the whys and why nots before I decided that I am not going to run,” she told Reuters, adding that she hadn’t even told her father the reason.

That hasn’t stopped the campaigns.

PICTURE EVERYWHERE

Posters, banners, stickers, t-shirts, calendars bearing the younger Duterte’s image with the words “Run, Sara, Run” have popped up across the archipelago of 108 million people. Her supporters say she has nothing to do with the campaigns.

“Run, Sara, Run” calls have increased among the millions of Filipinos abroad, a key support base of Duterte.

In Cebu City, more than 500 motorcycles joined a motorcade for the “Sara Duterte for President Movement” on March 28 to convince the older Duterte to get her to run.

“I thank all of them for their trust and confidence,” Sara Duterte said. “Not everyone wants to be president.”

Ramon Casiple, a political analyst and vice president of consulting and research firm Novo Trends PH, said the signs still pointed to a likely run by Sara Duterte that would mirror the way her father’s last minute bid had energised his 2016 campaign.

“You are talking about the same set of tactics,” Casiple said.

Like her father, Sara Duterte trained as a lawyer before joining politics. In 2010, she became mayor of Davao, a city of more than 1.6 million people 1,000 kilometers from Manila.

Though she has never held national office, polls suggest she would beat potential candidates such as boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao and the namesake son of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

A victory could help protect her father against potential legal challenges in a country where losing the immunity of office can often open the way to the settling of political vendettas, political analysts said.

Duterte also faces possible international action over his bloody war on drugs.

“No one can protect Duterte better than her,” said Carlos Conde, Philippines researcher for the New York-based Human Rights Watch.

LOYAL TO FATHER, QUESTIONS OVER POLICIES

Sara Duterte, like her father, has a reputation for being tough. She has openly traded barbs with the president, but few doubt her loyalty.

During her confirmation as a reserve army colonel last year, a senator asked her why the president had repeatedly said he was afraid of her.

“That is just in his mind,” said Sara Duterte, in a crew cut and formal military uniform. “I have always supported him.”

Continuity would also be welcomed by the bureaucrats and tycoons who prospered under Duterte’s rule, said Earl Parreno, author of a biography of Duterte titled “Beyond Will & Power.”

Whether Sara Duterte would keep to her father’s policies is another question.

Sara Duterte showed her independence some three years ago when she united political factions to oust one of the president’s allies as lower house speaker.

She has not been so outspoken on the bloody drugs war that has been a centrepiece of Duterte’s administration, but has said prevention and rehabilitation should be part of drug policy, while adding “law enforcement should be quick to the draw.”

She has also not been as close to China as her father – whose close ties to Beijing rattled the traditional alliance with the United States and a domestic security establishment with close U.S. ties.

In 2020, Sara Duterte visited the United States for State Department sponsored leadership training.

“We should be a bystander in the China vs US issue,” she told Reuters.

“We should collect friends outside of the two, so that if one turns their back on us, we still have 9. And if both forget about us, we still have 8. And if 8 leave us, we should stand alone.” — Reuters

Various sectors launch online petition calling for Duterte’s resignation

PCOO

SOME 500 medical frontliners, lawyers, businessmen, members of the academe, media workers and civil leaders on Thursday initiated an online petition calling for the resignation of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, citing his “failure” in addressing various issues facing the country.

“Our country is on the brink of disaster. At the time the nation needs him most, Duterte is a total failure as a leader. He must step down,” the group declared in the running petition which had more than 27,000 signatories as of Friday afternoon.

In the petition filed on change.org, they said Mr. Duterte’s administration was marred by “incompetence, brutality, corruption and kowtowing to foreign powers” over the past five years.

The pandemic “only magnified his failures of leadership,” the petition read.

The petitioners said the country needs competent leadership to implement broad-scale testing, expand contact tracing, and boost the healthcare system with a focus on setting up isolation and treatment facilities.

WEST PHILIPPINE SEA

They also slammed the administration for failing to assert the country’s sovereignty amid the increased aggression of China in the West Philippine Sea.

Six warships of the Chinese navy have scattered across the South China Sea, according to the taskforce handling Manila’s border disputes with Beijing.

Citing sovereignty patrols conducted by the Philippine military, the taskforce said two Houbei class missile warships were spotted at the Mischief Reef, one Corvette class warship at the Fiery Crosoque s Reef, and one navy tugboat at the Subi Reef.

About 15 vessels, either manned by Chinese Maritime Militia, People’s Liberation Army Navy, or the Chinese Coast Guard were also spotted at the Scarborough Shoal, the task force said.

About 240 Chinese vessels supposedly manned by Chinese militias have also spread out to a wider area in the South China Sea, it said.

Mr. Roque has said the President would try to iron out the tension between Manila and Beijing privately.

“He has shown that so far, in the past five years of his administration, we have moved from a position of antagonism with China to a position of friendship and we would benefit greatly now that we are able to talk with China,” he told a televised news briefing this week.

The petitioners, on the other hand, said, “Duterte’s subservience to China threatens to tie our vaccination program to China’s expansionist agenda in the West Philippine Sea.”

Defense and other government officials, business groups, civic and church leaders, among other sectors, have already condemned China’s aggression.

The petition said the populist leader remains “obsessed with the drug war, attacking his critics and ordering the deaths of those he considers his enemies” instead of using government resources to address the prolonged pandemic and defend the country’s territorial integrity.

“We do not need a leader who fuels fear or division. We need one who can unite all Filipinos of various beliefs in this one big fight to save the nation,” the petition said.

“Duterte is not this leader. He has done too much damage to our people. He will never change. He must resign.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

NGCP asks authorities to look into projected Luzon power supply shortage

BW FILE PHOTO

THE National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) has asked authorities to look into an expected power supply shortage in the Luzon grid, citing projections of thin operating margins which will lead to limited supply.

“We continue to urge the authorities to look into this impending power situation in Luzon during this summer season, the privately-led grid operator said in a press release issued on Friday.

As a transmission service provider, the NGCP said it can only guarantee the dispatch of grid resources, but cannot “intervene on matters concerning power generation.”

Citing the Energy department’s estimates as of August 2020, the NGCP said the Luzon grid is projected to reach a peak of 11,841 megawatts (MW) in May 2021.

“Thin operating margin is forecasted in the Luzon grid from April to August 2021 due to multiple power plants on extended outage, thereby providing limited power supply. Technical limitations brought about by the pandemic such as delay in delivery of materials or spare parts, temporary work stoppage, and travel restrictions were stated as some of the reasons for the plants’ extended outages,” the NGCP said.

It explained the projected shortage will most likely not take place if the forecasted peak demand is not reached, given the existing quarantine restrictions and assuming no further plant outages will happen during the period.

“The Luzon grid needs around 4% of the peak demand, or around 475MW in regulating power to stabilize the grid. It also needs to maintain power equivalent to the largest plant online of about 647MW as contingency power to support the grid in case of an emergency power plant shutdown,” the NGCP said.

On Friday, the NGCP also asked the public to conserve electricity by unplugging appliances from outlets when not in use, keeping air conditioning units at 25 degrees Celsius, and regularly cleaning fan blades or cooling unit filters, among others. — Angelica Y. Yang

DTI says gov’t must offer perks to encourage local manufacturing of vaccines

FIRMS considering domestic vaccine manufacturing will need faster processing and government procurement priority, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez, in a briefing on Thursday night, named four firms eyeing local production of vaccines, including coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines.

“(The companies) will subscribe to all requirements and submit all the documents, kailangan lang ma-prioritize para mapabilis ang proseso ng pag-put up ng planta dito,” he said.

Mr. Lopez added that the companies would be taking business risks in putting up manufacturing facilities, especially if the government decides to buy products abroad.

“Ito po ay ini-encourage po sana na may government procurement of locally produced vaccines subject to standards and prices,” he said, adding that government commitment to buy locally-made vaccines would help facilitate the companies’ decision to build domestic facilities.

Mr. Lopez in his presentation showed that United Laboratories Inc. (Unilab) has confirmed it would work on manufacturing a COVID-19 vaccine locally. The fill and finish plant, in which active ingredients are imported for local packaging, could start operations by 2023. The company plans to export to other countries in Southeast Asia.

Meanwhile, Glovax Biotech Corp. has signed an agreement with technology partner Eubiologics for a P7.5-billion Clark-based fill and finish plant that could start operations in October 2022.

On the other hand, IG Biotech, Inc. and IP Biotech are looking at an agreement with the government to produce COVID-19 vaccines as well as vaccines that help prevent pneumococcal disease and influenza.

Dr. Zen Biotech Inc. also plans to produce second-generation recombinant vaccines for COVID-19 and other pharmaceuticals, with technology providers from India and China. The company is also eyeing a possible partner from the United States for the Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccines.

The first two phases of the Dr. Zen project would cost $40 million, and the fill and finish facilities in the First Bulacan Industrial Estate could start operations by next year.

Science and Technology Undersecretary Rowena Cristina L. Guevara has said some of theses companies are planning to start manufacturing vaccines that are already “well established” such as those that help prevent measles and rubella, before making COVID-19 vaccines when clinical trials are done.

The Board of Investments last month said such local manufacturing could provide supplies for the latter stages of the population’s inoculation against COVID-19, or for potential additional jabs. — Jenina P. Ibañez

Manila Water’s revised water contract with gov’t marks ‘new chapter’

AN OFFICIAL from listed Manila Water Co., Inc. said on Friday its revised concession agreement (CA) with the government is an important milestone for the firm, adding the contract took more than a year to negotiate.

“This important milestone is a culmination of several months of hard work and discussion with several key government agencies to arrive at what we see as a new working template for public-private partnership,” Manila Water Chairman Fernando Zobel de Ayala said during the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting held virtually.

He said that the CA, which took more than a year to negotiate, marked a “very important new chapter” for the company.

Under the revised agreement, Manila Water will no longer be allowed to charge its customers for corporate income tax and implement foreign currency differential adjustments. The agreement is patterned after the economic provisions of the New Clark City Joint Venture Agreement.

During the stockholders’ meeting, Manila Water President and Chief Executive Officer Jose Rene Gregory D. Almendras said that the agreement will allow the company to “focus on the urgent need to ensure sustainable water supply and wastewater services to the East Zone of Metro Manila.”

He added that the revised concession agreement also “imposed caps on increases in wastewater and water tariffs, while removing the main issue of taxes.”

In a previous disclosure, Manila Water said the revised CA lowers the “inflation factor to two-thirds of the consumer price index adjustment, and imposes caps on increases in standard rates for water and wastewater.”

“Instead of a market-driven appropriate discount rate, Manila Water shall now be limited to a 12% fixed nominal discount rate,” the firm said in a regulatory filing on April 5.

Manila Water also said the rate-rebasing mechanism under the original agreement is retained. “Thus, the rates for water and sewerage services provided by Manila Water shall be set at a level that will permit it to recover over the term of the concession expenditures efficiently and prudently incurred and to earn a reasonable rate of return,” it explained.

The revised CA also includes a tariff freeze until Dec. 31, 2022 in line with the government’s program of assisting the disadvantaged sector and contributing to economic recovery.

Manila Water, a subsidiary of Ayala Corp., is the exclusive provider of water and used water services to over six million people in the Manila Water Concession, particularly in the East Zone of Metro Manila and Rizal Province.

Shares in Manila Water rose by 0.69% or 10 centavos to close at P14.50 apiece on Friday. — Angelica Y. Yang with a report from Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Senator asks Energy dep’t to explain sale of Chevron’s Malampaya stake to Udenna

A SENATOR on Friday asked the Energy department to explain its decision allowing the transfer of the 45% stake of Chevron Philippines, Inc. in the Malampaya gas-to-power project to a unit of Udenna Corp., citing irregularities in the transaction.

Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Committee on Energy, said UC Malampaya Pte. Ltd.’s acquisition of Chevron’s 45% share in the gas field was completed even if the Dennis A. Uy-led firm failed to submit necessary documents to the Department of Energy (DoE).

The divestment was approved on March 11, 2020 despite the fact that “it was only on Oct. 28 last year that the DoE has been officially provided with the documents on the Malampaya share’s divestment,” Mr. Gatchalian said in a statement.

He noted the joint operating agreement signed by the members of the consortium operating the Malampaya project contains a provision requiring a party to get all prior permits or approvals from the state before sales of shares are finalized.

The senator said the DoE’s legal department, during a Senate panel hearing in November, said these transactions are governed by a circular requiring an “evaluation of the technical, legal and financial capacity of the company.”
The senator also said Presidential Decree (PD) No. 87 requires the approval of the Energy department for the transfer of shares.

The Senate Energy Committee last year told the DoE to help determine “whether there is a need for another issuance to clarify if these kinds of transactions would need executive approval or not, and their recommendations to the legislature on possible amendments on PD 87.”

“It bears stressing the need for an explanation from the DoE’s end on how they could justify their approval of the transaction,” Mr. Gatchalian said.

He said the DoE has the responsibility to explain to consumers the consequences of the divestment because they are “the primordial concern.”

“We want to make sure that the consumers will receive 24/7 electricity at a least cost manner,” he said. “We have laws and regulations that govern all of these transactions, and those laws are meant to create a stable environment in the power sector.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Strong rains seen to hit Eastern Visayas, Bicol Sunday as 2nd typhoon of the year enters PHL

TROPICAL storm Surigae has intensified into a typhoon and entered the Philippine area Friday morning, state weather bureau PAGASA reported.

Given the local name Bising, the typhoon is the second to enter the country this year. It is not expected to make landfall, according to PAGASA, but its wide diameter will bring winds and strong rains in eastern parts of the country over the weekend.

“Over the next three days, Bising is forecast to steadily intensify,” the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said in its Friday morning bulletin.

“It is likely that the winds and heavy rains associated with this tropical cyclone will begin affecting portions of Eastern Visayas and Bicol Region beginning on Sunday,” it said.

Typhoon warning signals, however, were expected to be raised by Friday evening over parts of the provinces of Northern Samar and Eastern Samar.

Bising will bring rough to very rough seas in the eastern seaboards of Visayas and Mindanao over the next 24 hours, PAGASA said.

All land and sea travel bound for Visayas and Mindanao via the Matnog Port in southern Luzon and all other ports are suspended, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) said.

“The DOTr advises trucking/logistics companies and buses not to proceed or postpone their planned trips in order to avoid long queues at Matnog, Sorsogon, to Daraga, Albay,” the advisory issued on Friday said.

DoTr has asked its attached agencies, including the Land Transportation Office and the Philippine Coast Guard, to enforce the travel suspension.

The suspension was requested by the Office of Civil Defense in the Bicol region and was approved by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council-Emergency Operations Center.

As of 10 a.m. Friday, the typhoon was located 960 kilometers (km) east of Surigao City, Surigao del Norte. It was moving northwest at 15 km per hour with maximum sustained winds of 130 km/h near the center and gustiness of up to 160 km/h. — Marifi S. Jara and Jenina P. Ibañez

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