F&S Holdings, the investment firm owned by Rep. Mikee Romero and his wife Sheila, has made an exit from the airline business to focus on their interests in the power and ports sectors.
The company has sold its 60 percent share in AirAsia Philippines, the country’s third-largest airline, to AA Com Travel Philippines Inc.
This makes AA Com the sole local owner and majority shareholder of the airline. The remaining 40 percent stake in AirAsia Philippines will continue to be held by Capital A Bhd founders Tony Fernandez and Datuk Kamarudin Menarum.
F&S Holdings had increased its stake in AirAsia Philippines in June 2019, acquiring additional shares from bilyonaryo Alfredo Yao and Maan Hontiveros, which raised its ownership to 44.4 percent. Later that year, the company took majority control of the airline by purchasing Antonio “Tonyboy” Cojuangco’s 15.6 percent stake, bringing its ownership to 60 percent.
According to F&S Holdings, the decision to exit AirAsia Philippines was a well-planned and amicable one, pointing out that they had
to wait until the ongoing pandemic and its impact on the air travel industry had subsided.
Sheila, chairman of F&S Holdings, said the company is now excited about consolidating its business enterprises and refocusing on core operations in the power and ports sectors.
CapitalOne Energy Corp. will serve as the holding company for integrating the Romero group’s power generation companies, including investments in the renewable energy sector through ADSI, a 40-megawatt solar power plant in Digos, Davao del Sur, and Fort Pilar Energy, which operates 100-MW battery energy storage system power plants in Zamboanga Del Sur.
The group also owns Belgrove Power Corporation, which possesses the 650-MW Malaya thermal power plant.
CapitalOne Energy is currently expanding its solar power portfolio with the development of new sites in Cagayan, Nueva Ecija, Batangas, Marinduque, and Palawan, which will have a combined capacity of 180 MW.
Sheila expressed her hopes that CapitalOne Energy’s future endeavors will contribute to powering up the economy and energizing more communities in the Philippines.
Sheila also highlighted their commitment to aggressively invest in the family’s core businesses in Globalport terminals, which currently operate 10 ports nationwide.
