‘MIC not allowed to run NGCP’

The Maharlika Investment Corporation is limited to acquiring equities from corporations and cannot exercise governance over them, Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero said Sunday.

"Perhaps Speaker [Martin] Romualdez should review the Maharlika bill, which we approved. Under this measure, the Maharlika Investment Corporation cannot run any companies," Escudero said in a radio interview.

"The MIC's mandate is to invest in various businesses to generate income so that there will be funds for different government projects that will not come from the General Appropriations Act," he said.

Romualdez had proposed that the newly-convened MIC consider investing in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines following a four-day power outage in Western Visayas.

According to the Speaker, the MIC's investment in NGCP "could provide essential capital for infrastructure upgrades and help in lowering the cost of electricity for consumers."

"The involvement of the Maharlika Investment Corporation could be a significant step towards achieving a reliable, efficient, and sustainable energy infrastructure," he said.

He, however, did not say if the MIC would be involved in the management of the NGCP should the sovereign wealth fund decide to push through with his proposal.

The NGCP, a former government asset, is currently co-owned by the State Grid Corporation of China with 40 percent, while Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp. and Calaca High Power Corp. own 30 percent each.

Henry Sy Jr. owns Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp., while Robert Coyiuto Jr. owns Calaca High Power Corp.

For his part, MIC president and CEO Rafael Consing Jr. expressed his support for Romualdez's proposal, stressing the NGCP's importance in the country's economic and social well-being.