EDC, Philippines' Largest Geothermal Firm, Receives $5 Billion Takeover Bid from Indonesian Group

MANILA, Philippines — First Gen Corp. confirmed on Monday that it has received an unsolicited, indicative, and non-binding offer of $5 billion from Indonesia's PT Barito Renewables TBK (BREN) to acquire Energy Development Corp. (EDC), the Philippines' largest geothermal power producer. In a stock exchange filing, First Gen acknowledged the offer, which was first reported by Bloomberg. The deal remains preliminary and is contingent upon due diligence, the execution of transaction documents, and the necessary regulatory and corporate approvals. "To date, there have been no discussions between the parties, no agreements have been signed, and First Gen has not appointed any advisors for this transaction," First Gen said in its filing. If the transaction pushes through, the sale of EDC could provide First Gen with a significant financial boost to fund its future growth and expansion initiatives. Juan Paolo Colet, managing director at China Bank Capital Corp., advised First Gen to seriously consider monetizing its geothermal business. Based on First Gen’s 45.8 percent economic stake in EDC, Colet noted that a $5 billion equity valuation would translate into proceeds of about $2.29 billion or roughly P141 billion at current exchange rates. This proposed sale marks a remarkable return on one of the Lopez Group's major investments. First Gen acquired EDC from the government for around P58.5 billion in 2007. "Given First Gen’s persistent market valuation discount, such a transaction represents an opportunity to return a meaningful amount of capital to shareholders while simultaneously recycling proceeds into more profitable clean energy investments," Colet added. Following the news of BREN’s offer, First Gen shares saw an uptick, climbing as high as P22.30 before settling at P19.80, an 18.42 percent increase from the previous day’s close. COL Financial, a stock brokerage firm, expressed uncertainty about whether First Gen and its partner GIC/Macquarie Group would be willing to divest their interests in EDC. "It’s more of a valuation issue than anything," COL Financial chief equity strategist April Lee-Tan told The STAR. EDC currently operates the country’s largest geothermal portfolio, with over 1,000 megawatts of capacity, contributing more than half of the Philippines’ total geothermal output. BREN, on the other hand, is the renewable energy arm of Indonesian conglomerate Barito Group. Its portfolio includes three geothermal assets totaling 886 MW in West Java, Indonesia, representing 38 percent of the Indonesian market, according to data platform IDN Financials. This potential deal follows First Gen's sale of a majority stake in its gas business to tycoon Enrique Razon Jr.'s Prime Infra for P50 billion in November 2025, a transaction that had been a source of internal contention within the Lopez Group.