Lopez-led First Gen Corp. (FGen) reported a marginal net income growth of two percent year-on-year in the first half of 2025, with weaker performance from its geothermal and natural gas businesses offsetting gains.

In a disclosure filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) on Tuesday, Aug.12, FGen said its net income slightly increased to ₱8.6 billion in the first six months of the year from ₱8.4 billion in the same period last year.

FGen President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Francis Giles Puno said the slower growth is attributed to “slight headwinds” faced by the company.

“First Gen’s steady performance in the first half of 2025 was an achievement as the industry was affected by a softer increase in power demand, as well as lower electricity prices,” Puno stated. “We, however, continue to see challenging market conditions with the local economy not performing as strong as expected in 2025.”

The company’s subsidiary, Energy Development Corp. (EDC), saw its geothermal power plants’ recurring net income decline amid lower prices in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and costs associated with drilling and expansion projects.

Similarly, First NatGas Power Corp., which operates the 420-megawatt (MW) San Gabriel natural gas plant, posted a drop in revenue after its power supply deal with Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) expired in February 2024.

Because of this, FGen’s revenues saw a five-percent decline from $1.278 billion (₱72.1 billion) to $1.213 billion (₱69.3 billion).

While other natural gas plants—the 1,000-MW Santa Rita, 500-MW San Lorenzo, and 97-MW Avion power plants—reported higher recurring earnings, these gains were “negatively outweighed” by the depressed earnings from San Gabriel.

Overall, the company’s natural gas power plants, which account for 66 percent of total consolidated revenues, recorded a four-percent decline in recurring earnings to ₱5.5 billion.

Despite the challenges, FGen’s hydroelectric power plants showed strong momentum. The company reported high water levels and increased irrigation requirements, boosting hydropower’s contribution to revenues. Hydropower makes up four percent of FGen’s total consolidated revenues.

The hydro platform’s share of recurring earnings jumped to ₱850 million, a significant increase from ₱525.4 million the previous year, driven by the Pantabangan-Masiway power plants, which benefited from a higher starting elevation in 2025, leading to a larger volume of electricity sold.

The 165-MW Casecnan power plant, acquired last year, also contributed ₱140 million to recurring income.

Additionally, FGen LNG Corp., which began operations in January, contributed to the company’s performance, generating a recurring net income of ₱1.3 billion.