Many of the Filipinos who landed in Forbes Magazine’s list of the richest people in the world for 2022 happen also to be players in the country’s energy sector.
Leading the list is former Senate President Manny Villar, the richest Filipino on the list. At rank 263, the real estate magnate has a net worth of $8.3 billion (around Php 426.6 billion). Villar entered the energy sector by way of PAVI Green Renewable Energy, Inc. Recently, the company said it will be investing around Php40 billion to build a 1,000-megawatt (MW) renewable energy (RE) portfolio in three to five years.
Enrique Razon is the second richest Pinoy in the list at rank 369 with a net worth of $6.7 billion (around Php343 billion). Razon owns Prime Infra, which has a joint venture (JV) with Leandro Leviste’s Solar Philippines. Terra Solar, the Razon-Leviste JV firm, offered an unsolicited bid to supply the Manila Electric Company (MERALCO) with 850MW of mid-merit power from RE sources. MERALCO recently declared the bid to challenge Terra Solar’s offer a failure.
The Razon group also owns MORE Power, Iloilo City’s distribution utility. In January, MORE Power bought a 32MW oil-fired diesel power barge from ACEN.
Henry Sy, Jr., is the third richest Filipino in the Forbes list at rank 1,096 with a net worth of $2.8 billion (around Php143 billion). Sy Jr. chairs Synergy Grid & Development Philippines, the holding firm of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. He also serves as Vice Chairman of SM Investments Corporation (SMIC), which recently announced its acquisition of the Philippine Geothermal Production Company (PGPC) – owner of the Tiwi Steam Field in Albay and the MakBan Steam Field in Laguna and Batangas.
Sy Jr.’s siblings Hans, Herbert, Harley, Teresita, and Elizabeth are also among the richest Filipinos on the Forbes list. Teresita serves as SMIC’s Vice Chairperson, while Harley is its Executive Director.
Meanwhile, San Miguel Corporation (SMC) President and COO Ramon Ang is the tenth richest Filipino at rank 1,513 with a net worth of $2 billion (around Php143 million). SMC Global Power Holdings, the diversified conglomerate’s power arm, is the country’s second largest power generating company.
SMC Global Power is in the process of developing liquefied natural gas power plants in Negros Occidental and Leyte. It also bagged a contract with MERALCO for the supply of 170MW in peaking power this summer.
