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Meralco saga: Recounting the epic corporate war between MVP and RSA
Business
The Stock Market
Meralco saga: Recounting the epic corporate war between MVP and RSA
Meralco saga: Recounting the epic corporate war between MVP and RSA
Published Aug 5, 2025 11:30 am
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Updated Aug 5, 2025 02:29 pm
In the late 2000s, Philippine business saw an intense corporate war as two of the country's most aggressive conglomerates, Metro Pacific Investment Corp. (MPIC) of Manuel V. Pangilinan and San Miguel Corp. (SMC) of Ramon S. Ang, went to war for a single asset: Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
Then controlled by the Lopez family, Meralco was considered the “crown jewel” of Philippine business. For years, the battle for the nation’s largest power distributor was a “Game of Thrones” in the corporate world, with Pangilinan and Ang waging a relentless war of acquisitions, legal maneuvers, and boardroom showdowns.
The rivalry began when the Lopez-controlled First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC), which had historical ties to Meralco, signaled its willingness to divest a substantial portion of its stake.
The Lopez group’s move immediately piqued Pangilinan’s interest. He saw Meralco as a key component of his vision, as it offered synergies with his existing empire—telecommunications giant PLDT Inc. and infrastructure holding firm MPIC.
Meanwhile, Ang, who was aggressively expanding San Miguel from its traditional food and beverages business into infrastructure and power, also recognized Meralco’s potential. Like Pangilinan, he viewed the utility as crucial to his growing power generation business and future expansion plans.
But what motivated the Lopez family to divest from such a highly profitable and significant asset? Well, the family was perceived under intense political pressure due to its ownership of the broadcast giant ABS-CBN Corp., a situation compounded by substantial debt.
For the Lopezes, selling their Meralco stake—which holds a near-monopoly on power distribution in Metro Manila and serves millions of customers—was seen as a move to deleverage and refocus their business.
Duel for Meralco’s control
According to veteran market strategist Jonathan Ravelas, a senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., the Lopezes began divesting their Meralco stake in 2008, a move that opened the door for a corporate battle between Ang and Pangilinan, known for their initials, RSA and MVP, respectively.
Ang, through his group’s energy arm, Global 5000 Investment Inc. (now San Miguel Global Power), began aggressively accumulating Meralco shares. A key part of this strategy involved a major acquisition from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), which held a 27 percent stake in the utility.
Ang paid a premium price of ₱90 per share for the 27 percent GSIS stake, totaling ₱30 billion, even though Meralco was trading at around ₱44 to ₱45 a share at the time.
San Miguel also entered into a share purchase agreement with another state-owned firm, Land Bank of the Philippines, for 43.23 million Meralco shares, again at a premium of ₱90 per share. However, this deal became the most dramatic subplot of the Meralco war.
Shortly after the agreement was signed, Land Bank abruptly rescinded it, citing that the shares were potentially tied to a land reform case and that the sale might be “grossly disadvantageous to the government.” San Miguel subsequently sued Land Bank over the canceled deal.
But even before the public knew the full extent of the Lopezes’ willingness to sell, both San Miguel and MVP groups began quietly acquiring Meralco shares from the open market, helping them both establish an initial foothold.
The rise of MVP
However, MVP has a different approach, as his group was seen as a partner to the Lopez family rather than a direct competitor.
In May 2009, the Lopez-led FPHC agreed to sell a 20 percent stake in Meralco to the PLDT Group. This stake was later transferred to Beacon Electric Asset Holdings Inc., a joint venture between MPIC and FPHC.
The battle for Meralco’s board was intense. With both the MVP and San Miguel groups holding significant shares, the 2009 Meralco stockholders' meetings became a proxy war, with both sides actively campaigning for votes.
This is where the Lopez family’s remaining shares, though reduced, became the deciding factor. The family chose to side with Pangilinan, which became the turning point in the corporate battle and led to MVP’s rise.
In October of that same year, FPHC sold an additional 6.6 percent stake at ₱140 per share, or ₱9.2 billion. They sold another 2.7 percent stake at ₱180 per share in March 2010.
By June 2010, MVP had acquired a total of 45.5 percent of Meralco’s outstanding shares from the market and other shareholders, with most of the shares coming from the Lopezes.
Through shares held by Beacon Electric Holdings, Pangilinan took control of the Meralco board of directors and management. The Lopezes sold their final 2.66 percent stake in Meralco in March 2012.
Facing the reality of not being able to gain control, the San Miguel group sold its 27 percent stake in Meralco to JG Summit Holdings Inc. of the Gokongwei family for approximately ₱72 billion in 2013.
It was a profitable exit for Ang, allowing San Miguel to reinvest capital into other infrastructure and power projects where they could achieve majority control. This also marked the end of San Miguel’s direct bid for Meralco.
On the other hand, the legal battle over the Land Bank shares finally came to an end just this year. After nearly 17 years, both the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of San Miguel.
However, there is no public announcement yet on what Ang’s plan is for the Meralco shares. However, the MVP group has expressed that it is open to potentially buying them.
New era of collaboration
Following their intense battle over Meralco, the relationship between RSA and MVP has significantly improved. The former rivals now find themselves on the same side in several major business ventures.
In October 2023, Ang acquired a minority stake in Pangilinan’s MPIC, a move that sparked discussions about a potential merger of their tollway businesses to create a “super entity.”
The two tycoons, in a separate venture, have also partnered with the Aboitiz Group to construct a $3.3 billion integrated natural gas facility in Batangas.