Author: gqSbgCfmna

ACEN Corp. is not slowing down its renewables expansion to hit 8,000 megawatts by yearend, with a capital-raising initiative on its radar even as geopolitical risks hound the global market.

At the Ayala firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting in Makati City, its president and CEO Eric Francia said ACEN was exploring all options to secure fresh funds for the rollout of more clean power assets.

Francia expressed hope for pursuing fundraising activities in the next six to 12 months.

He noted that conducting a stock rights offering, previously targeted at P30 billion, remains on the table.

But Francia could not provide figures on how much the company intends to raise.

Market-driven

‘Timing and structure will ultimately depend on prevailing market conditions,’ the CEO said.

‘We continue to closely monitor external factors, including geopolitical developments in the Middle East, inflation trends, interest rate movements and overall capital market sentiment,’ he added.

Francia, however, said that the firm was ‘in no rush’ as ACEN assesses its capital strategy.

‘But certainly within the year, we would like to have a firm view in terms of what our capital strategy is and get going with those decisions,’ he said.

P80-B outlays

This year, ACEN is boosting its investments to more than P80 billion, significantly higher than the actual spending that reached P55 billion in 2025.

About 75 percent of the investment for 2026 would boost the Philippine operations of the Ayala Group’s listed energy arm. Several solar and wind facilities are in the pipeline.

ACEN will also scale up its investments in battery energy storage systems to complement the expansion of its solar portfolio.

‘I believe that we should be on track to get to eight-plus gigawatts by the end of the year. That would add around a gigawatt [1,000 MW] plus of new capacity-not operational, but we expect to be starting the construction of new capacity around the region,’ Francia said.

Asia-Pacific expansion

Aside from the Philippines, ACEN is present in Australia, Vietnam, Lao PDR, Indonesia and India.

Due to lower power prices and the temporary shutdown of some Northern Luzon wind assets, ACEN saw a 60-percent plunge in net income last year. Profit fell to P3.8 billion from P9.36 billion.

Revenues also dropped by 14 percent to P32 billion against the previous P37.3 billion.

Several boxes were allegedly brought for former Sen. Ramon ‘Bong’ Revilla Jr., Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, and ex-Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) chief Manuel Bonoan, a witness told the Sandiganbayan on Thursday.

Vergel Niño Garcia, a former driver and aide of state witness and ex-DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, made the revelation during the anti-graft court’s Third Division’s bail hearing for the malversation case of Revilla and several of his co-accused.

Revilla, Estrada, and Bonoan are respondents for plunder cases, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Garcia also said he allegedly delivered similar boxes and suitcases intended for late DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina ‘Cathy’ Cabral, former Education Undersecretary Trygve Olaivar, a certain ‘Carleen Villa,’ and a building in Manila.

This information was gleaned after a series of questions from Associate Justice Karl Miranda, who is the Third Division chairperson.

However, Garcia said he personally did not know that the ‘maleta’ and boxes contained cash, which he only learned when the investigation into flood control anomalies began.

During the deliveries, he told the court that the boxes were sealed and the suitcases were locked, and he did not open them.

It was also Bernardo who told Garcia that the boxes were intended for senators, DPWH officials, and other personalities.

Garcia said he delivered 12 boxes intended for Revilla in the ‘White House’ in Cavite in February 2025.

In November 2024, Garcia said he delivered 12 boxes intended for Estrada at the ‘Artiaga Building’ in San Juan. Garcia said he personally saw Estrada during the delivery.

For Bonoan, he said he delivered a total of 55 boxes: 15 boxes at a posh hotel in Manila in November 2024; 20 boxes at a certain location in March 2025; and another 20 boxes at a restaurant in Tomas Morato St. in Quezon City in June 2025. Garcia said these boxes were allegedly received by Bonoan’s driver, whom he identified as a certain ‘Joni.’

He also said he delivered boxes for Cabral twice in 2023: one paper bag in her residence in ‘Tatalon’ in Quezon City, and one ‘smaller’ box in the parking area of Quirino Grandstand, during which Cabral’s driver fetched the package while the late undersecretary was present during the transaction.

As for Olaivar, Garcia said the former DepEd official personally received the boxes and luggage from him. In total, Garcia said Olaivar has received 15 boxes and four pieces of luggage across three deliveries between 2023 and 2024.

Meanwhile, Garcia said that Villa received eight boxes from him personally in January 2025.

Garcia also said he delivered six boxes in a building in Manila ‘in first quarter of 2025.’ However, Garcia said Bernardo did not tell him for whom the delivery was.

Associate Justice Ronald Moreno asked Garcia: ‘Did you not wonder or worry that the boxes contain illegal items?’

‘No, your honor,’ Garcia said.

‘I trust that he would not put me in jeopardy,’ he said of Bernardo.

Inquirer has reached out to Bonoan and Estrada but has yet to respond as of posting time.

An unexpected power interruption affected parts of Olongapo City on Thursday after a snake came into contact with electrical equipment at a local substation.

In an advisory, Olongapo Electricity Distribution Company (OEDC) reported that the reptile had climbed onto a gantry structure within one of its substations.

The animal’s contact with energized components caused a line-to-ground fault, prompting protective systems to activate and automatically shut down the affected power feeders, the OEDC explained.

The shutdown, while disruptive to residents and businesses, was a safety measure designed to prevent further damage to the electrical network and ensure public safety, it added.

Utility personnel immediately responded to the incident, clearing the obstruction and conducting necessary inspections before restoring power to the affected areas.

OEDC confirmed that electricity service has since been fully restored.

The company apologized for the inconvenience caused by the sudden outage and expressed appreciation for the public’s patience and understanding.

The Blackwater players showered new coach Pat Aquino with water the moment he entered the team’s dugout on Wednesday, in celebration of his first career PBA victory.

And it was no ordinary victory.

This one came at the expense of powerhouse San Miguel Beer-a 126-120 decision at Ninoy Aquino Stadium that Aquino will definitely cherish for a long time.

‘One for the books, of course,’ Aquino said after the Bossing snapped out of a four-game slump in the Commissioner’s Cup.

The former Gilas Pilipinas women’s coach finally got his milestone win on his third game after replacing erstwhile Blackwater mentor Jeffrey Cariaso.

It’s not much of a win for the Bossing at this stage, as their 2-6 record still leaves them at the bottom of the standings, staring at a very narrow path to qualifying for the playoffs.

But considering where he is now, Aquino will gladly take the win, which was fashioned behind the efforts of import Robert Upshaw III, Sedrick Barefield, debuting rookie CJ Austria and BJ Andrade.

Cone next

‘It’s so tough to win here in the PBA,’ Aquino said. ‘A lot of challenges, a lot of good coaches around the league and this is professional. We got to deal with it like you got to perform and do your best all the time.’

Another great coach awaits the Bossing-Aquino’s idol, in fact-as they hope to keep their bid afloat against Barangay Ginebra and chief tactician Tim Cone on Friday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Upshaw went off for 35 points, the bulk of which came in the first half when he buried four four-point shots that catapulted Blackwater to a 22-point advantage.

Barefield chipped in 29 points, hitting his lone three at a crucial time as Blackwater went ahead 120-116 entering the final two minutes.

Austria proved to be a steal of a pickup as he registered 11 points and six rebounds, aside from the toughness that he was known for during his UAAP career with La Salle. Blackwater signed Austria after he was curiously placed on the unrestricted free agent list by Titan Ultra, the team that selected him in the Rookie Draft.

Andrade added 13 points and seven rebounds, providing quality minutes during the homestretch.

San Miguel dropped to 4-5 despite 38 points from Bennie Boatwright in the second game of his return, 28 points and 13 rebounds from June Mar Fajardo and 24 points from CJ Perez.

Sergio Veloso’s era with Ateneo Blue Eagles has come to an end.

After three seasons, the Brazilian coach handled his final game in the UAAP-and in the Philippines-as Ateneo absorbed a heartbreaking 22-25, 23-25, 25-12, 25-21, 15-10 loss to Far Eastern University to close its Season 88 campaign on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

According to reports, Veloso has already decided to leave after this season. Tiebreakertimes broke the news.

‘This is my last season in Ateneo. I am leaving the Philippines. I’ll work. I am part of the FIVB program. And now in this situation, I am now out of the PNVF,’ Veloso said.

‘For this time, Ateneo decided not only this season. This decision started in the last year, when change came in the PNVF.’

Veloso finished his final season with a 2-12 record.

Under his belt, Ateneo missed the chance to end a four-year Final Four drought. His first two seasons ended with identical 5-9 records when Lyann De Guzman and AC Miner were still leading the team.

Veloso was brought in by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation in 2023, handling the Alas Pilipinas squad in the Southeast Asian Games and Asian Games before Angiolino Frigoni replaced him for the FIVB Volleyball World Championship.

‘I want to thank Ateneo, thank the PNVF, for this opportunity to share my knowledge and my players. Not only for the girls, but for the national men’s team too, and for me, it’s so glad,’ said Veloso. ‘When I look at the end of the match, all the players, and the former players AC, Lyann, and Roma (Doromal). They give me nicknames, they call me ‘dad.’ And this for me is so good, because I know I can touch the players.’

As he leaves the country, Veloso brings precious memories not just from Philippine volleyball but from all the Filipinos he met.

‘When I think about the countries where I worked in the world, I stayed here three seasons, and if you ask me, out of my country, out of Brazil, here in the Philippines, I think it’s the best. Because the people, it’s more similar than Brazil. I tell them, the Philippines, they are Latin Asians, because the country has a lot of influence because it’s a Spanish-Latin country, and I appreciate it a lot,’ the outgoing Ateneo coach said.

Customers of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) can expect a bigger rebate as regulators ordered the swift implementation of P14.17-billion remaining refunds beginning May, as Filipinos reel from rising prices due to the Middle East war.

Based on a document posted on its website, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) directed the Manuel V. Pangilinan-led firm to hasten the rollout of the remaining refunds out of the original amount of P19.96 billion.

This is part of an earlier order that declared July 2022 to December 2024 as a lapsed period.

The true-up calculation shows the gap between Meralco’s actual weighted average tariff and the regulator-approved rate for the period under review.

The refund program started a year ago, initially covering P5.8 billion at a rate of P0.1189 per kilowatt hour (kWh).

Now, the ERC has mandated a higher average refund rate of P0.2511 per kWh.

Residential customers, in particular, will see a reduction of P0.4278 per kWh.

Immediate relief

‘By expediting the refund, we are providing more immediate relief to Meralco consumers, particularly in the face of rising electricity costs driven by global and domestic factors,’ ERC chair and CEO Francis Saturnino Juan said in a statement on Wednesday.

‘The true-up mechanism is a safeguard embedded in our regulatory framework, ensuring that tariffs remain cost-reflective and reasonable at all times,’ he added.

The ERC said the remaining amount would be refunded over a shorter period of 12 months instead of the original 36 months.

According to the ERC, the refund will be under a separate line item in their power bills, allowing consumers to check the amount being returned to them.

In February, Meralco sought regulatory approval for a capital spending of P272 billion for a five-year period, or until 2030.

Rate reset

Under a rate reset process, a regulated entity such as Meralco must submit to the ERC its spending and proposed projects over a certain period, usually five years, unless extended by the regulator. This will then be the basis of the rate that will be passed on to consumers.

Meralco is the country’s biggest power distributor, delivering electricity to over 8.2 million consumers in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, including the municipalities of Sto. Tomas, Batangas City and San Pascual.

Angelica Panganiban has warned the public against an online scam using the name and photos of her business resort.

In an Instagram post on Wednesday, April 22, Panganiban informed her followers about a fake Facebook page posing as her business, Mangrove Resort Subic.

‘SCAM ALERT – PLEASE READ and SHARE. We have been informed of a fake Facebook page pretending to be Mangrove Resort Subic and illegally using our name and photos to scam guests,’ she wrote.

The actress stressed that her resort does not process transactions through unofficial channels.

‘We DO NOT accept payments through unofficial pages. We ONLY have ONE official Facebook page. Any similar pages are FAKE and NOT affiliated with us!’ she added.

Panganiban urged the public to remain cautious when dealing with suspicious online transactions.

‘DO NOT send payments, personal details, or booking information to any suspicious page. DO NOT click unknown links or entertain offers that seem too good to be true. Always verify by contacting us through our official page or direct contact details,’ she said.

The post included an official statement from Uy Coronel and Villamor Law Offices, which was hired by the actress as they plan to coordinate with authorities to address the issue.

‘If you have been contacted or victimized, please report immediately and inform us. We are currently working with authorities regarding this matter. Stay alert and help us protect others by sharing this post,’ Panginiban noted.

According to the law firm, the fraudulent page has been actively responding to inquiries and accepting payments without the resort’s knowledge or consent, with reports that several individuals have already been scammed.

Meanwhile, Panginiban has been generating online buzz following her daring role opposite Mylene Dizon, in which they play lesbian lovers in the Prime Video’s new series ‘The Silent Noise.’

Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. has ordered police officers conducting checkpoint operations to speed up inspections of trucks transporting essential goods.

‘Amid the challenging situations that our country is experiencing, our personnel on the ground stationed at checkpoints will ensure that the flow of goods remains unhampered and uninterrupted,’ Nartatez said in a statement on Thursday.

He also said the new directive will not affect the police force’s crackdown on smuggled goods.

‘Checkpoint operations will continue to support law enforcement objectives without compromising the movement of legitimate cargo,’ the PNP chief said.

The top cop added that the police force will coordinate with local government units (LGUs) and other agencies to ensure that regulations are still enforced without disrupting essential transport.

Nartatez’ statement came after Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said ‘unnecessary and unreasonable’ checks and inspections of food trucks conducted by the police and LGUs at checkpoints delayed travel and wasted fuel.

Recto made the pronouncement on Tuesday, appealing to government agencies to help farmers and traders take advantage of reduced toll and port fees to soften the impact of high fuel prices on food.

Happiness is often shaped not by grand milestones, but by everyday choices to move forward, help others, and create meaning despite life’s challenges. Through Happiest Pinoy, Cebuana Lhuillier continues to spotlight Filipinos whose stories reflect quiet resilience and purposeful optimism-demonstrating that even the simplest moments can inspire hope and positive change across communities. More than a recognition platform, Happiest Pinoy has grown into a nationwide advocacy that highlights how personal strength and service to others can create lasting impact.

Cebuana Lhuillier’s Happiest Pinoy winner continue to inspire through #SimpleJoysPH

As the initiative evolves into the digital space through #SimpleJoysPH, the journeys of past winners continue to resonate-showing how small acts of courage, gratitude, and kindness can influence others in meaningful ways.

One such story is that of Zacarias Mansing, the 2025 Happiest Pinoy awardee, whose life journey reflects how adversity can be transformed into purpose.

In 2012, Zacarias’s life changed dramatically after a car accident left him paralyzed from the chest down. What could have been defined by loss instead became a turning point. Choosing not to be limited by his circumstances, he redirected his experience into service-becoming a socio-civic volunteer, education advocate, and motivational speaker. Guided by his personal mantra, ‘Making a Difference Despite Disability-Inspiring People, Instilling Hope,’ Zacarias has consistently demonstrated how determination and optimism can create impact far beyond one’s own circumstances.

For Cebuana Lhuillier President and CEO Jean Henri Lhuillier, stories like Zacarias’s reflect the deeper purpose of the initiative. ‘Happiest Pinoy highlights Filipinos who turn life’s challenges into opportunities to uplift others. Zacarias’s journey reminds us that happiness is not about circumstance-it is about choosing purpose, creating impact, and finding meaning in even the simplest moments.’

Since receiving the recognition in 2025, Zacarias has continued to expand his advocacy. His Books for Kids Project, which he launched in 2017, has now reached over 50,000 students across 300 public schools in Negros Oriental, promoting literacy while advancing awareness on disability inclusion. Through partnerships with schools and organizations, he delivers talks on resilience, leadership, and positive self-image-reaching diverse audiences from OWWA scholars to aspiring educators, school leaders, and senior high school students. His work reflects how individual purpose can translate into community impact.

For Zacarias, the recognition marked not an endpoint, but a renewed commitment to serve. He finds fulfillment in moments of gratitude, in supporting learners through education initiatives, and in seeing how encouragement can help others recognize their own potential. His experience reinforces a simple but powerful insight: meaningful impact often begins with small, intentional actions.

As Happiest Pinoy 2026 enters a fully digital chapter through #SimpleJoysPH, Cebuana Lhuillier continues to spotlight how everyday acts of resilience, generosity, and hope can create meaningful impact beyond individual stories. By amplifying journeys like Zacarias’s, the initiative underscores a simple but powerful truth: happiness is not defined by perfect circumstances, but by the choice to move forward with purpose and inspire positive change in others-even through life’s simplest moments.

After weeks of silence, Vice President Sara Duterte on Thursday denied that there were billions of pesos’ worth of transactions in her bank accounts and blasted not just former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV for these allegations, but also the Commission on Audit (COA) and the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) for now being part of a ‘machinery.’

In a lengthy statement issued hours after she responded to the ‘last-minute’ travel authority for her, Duterte said Trillanes, one of her fiercest critics, has been ‘peddling the same incredible story about alleged billions in bank accounts.’

‘From 2016 to 2026, nothing in his narrative has changed,’ Duterte said. ‘What has changed, however, is the machinery now backing him.’

The embattled vice president alleged that Trillanes is now being backed by the ‘machinery,’ which she said included her former political ally and now nemesis, President Marcos, whom she said ‘must be compelled to submit to a simple drug test,’ referring to the repeated calls for a hair-follicle test.

She also claimed that the House lawmakers have also been a part of the so-called ‘machinery’ backing Trillanes, accusing them of receiving ‘maletas and having repeatedly disregarded constitutional limits on her impeachment.

This time, however, Duterte included the COA, supposedly ‘backing’ Trillanes, questioning the timing of the state audit agency’s issuance of its findings on the use of her confidential funds ‘in a manner that conveniently aligns with political attacks.’

Lastly, she also criticized the newly-installed AMLC officials ‘who remain silent and refuse to clarify that there have been no findings of violations of anti-money laundering laws, and the billions of peso in bank accounts are untrue.’

Amid all the accusations against her, Duterte said she has one ‘simple’ response to the ‘attacks’ against her: her service record is ‘clean.’

‘[H]indi ako kailanman nagkaroon ng kaso sa paggamit ng pondo ng bayan. Lahat ng aking ari-arian at pera ay idineklara ko sa aking SALN (Not once have I been charged for using public funds. All of my properties and money are declared on my statement of assets, liabilities and net worth),’ she said.