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ENERGY Development Corp. (EDC) said that it has used
up the bulk of the proceeds of its maiden sale of shares
a year ago.
In a disclosure to the Philippine
Stock Exchange, EDC said that as of March 31 this year, it had a
balance of P1.35 billion from the P9.28 billion in net proceeds from
the company’s initial public offering (IPO) of three billion
shares.
EDC is the country’s largest
geothermal energy producer as well as provider of onshore drilling
services. A former subsidiary of state-owned Philippine National Oil
Co., majority control of EDC shifted to the Lopez Group after First
Gen Corp., through Red Vulcan Holdings Corp., posted the highest bid
of P58.5 billion for the government’s stake in the company.
For the second quarter of the
year, EDC said that it spent about P144 million for its expansion
projects. These include the upgrade of its drilling rigs, which used
up half of its second quarter planned expenditure, as well as
improvements in its Tanawon, Nasulo, Dauin and Mindanao III
geothermal projects.
The said geothermal projects form
part of the company’s organic growth, which coupled with plans for
acquiring a number of state-owned power plants, aims to increase
EDC’s 1,148-megawatt installed capacity by a roughly third in the
next five years.
Company officials earlier said
that EDC would use P5 to P6 billion of its IPO proceeds for these
projects.
Besides expanding its power
generation business, Paul Aquino, EDC president, said that the
company is banking on its drilling services to make it a global
player.
He said the company is raising a
war chest through fresh borrowings within the year.
--Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo
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