$1-B fund being raised for energy projects

The Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC), an entity that manages the sovereign wealth fund, said it plans to raise $1 billion for energy projects alone by the end of the year.

On the sidelines of an economic forum hosted by the German Club Manila, MIC president and chief executive officer Rafael Consing Jr. said he would request the board to put separate funding for energy investments, apart from the ₱125-billion seed capital.

Consing said this is due a risk limit of 15 percent they put on the MIC’S capital fund which means that “for every sector, we can only invest about 15 percent of total funds.”

This means that of the ₱125 billion, there will be an ₱18.75-billion fund for each sector such as agriculture, education, and energy.

“And it's going to be measured over a period of about five years because the reality is that as we deploy, those percentages will differ,” the MIC president told reporters late Wednesday, Feb. 28.

“But it will be fine-tuned, again, over a period of time, over five years. So today, against ₱125 billion of seed capital, call that ₱18.75 billion,” he added. “So it begs the question, how can we spend that ₱18.75 billion many times over? The requirements, for example, in energy, is more than ₱18.75 billion.”

To capitalize on the ₱18.75-billion fund, Consing said it would create a limited partnership with some sovereign wealth funds, wherein the MIC will be the fund manager.

“So, therefore, ₱18.75 billion will be effectively converted into a billion dollars. And that's how we're able to, therefore, spend it more than two or three times that amount,” he said.