Central Negros Electric Cooperative, Inc. (CENECO) is taking its next major step in transitioning from an electric distribution utility into a full-fledged asset management entity.
To present this institutional transformation, CENECO has invited key sector leaders and stakeholders across its franchise area to a consultative meeting at the Acacia Hotel in Bacolod City 1:30 p.m. on Friday, August 28.
The transition follows the execution of a Joint Venture Agreement with Negros Electric and Power Corporation, which officially transferred CENECO’s distribution assets to NEPC after earning approval from member-consumers during a plebiscite, Ceneco Acting General Manager Arnel Lapore said Wednesday in a letter to invited sector leaders.
NEPC now manages and operates the entire power distribution network across Bacolod, Bago, Talisay, and Silay, alongside the municipalities of Murcia and Don Salvador Benedicto, following its congressional franchise grant and the issuance of a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) by the Energy Regulatory Commission.
Under the joint venture agreement, CENECO retains a 30 percent equity stake in NEPC. Lapore emphasized the cooperative’s commitment to safeguarding these holdings and ensuring transparent asset management moving forward.
“We are pleased to inform you that the Board of Directors and Management of Central Negros Electric Cooperative, Inc. (CENECO) are actively pursuing the reorganization of CENECO as it transitions from a distribution utility into an asset management entity,” Lapore said.
“Through this agreement, CENECO retains a 30 percent equity stake in NEPC. We are fully committed to protecting these stakes and optimizing the dividends generated from NEPC’s operations”, he said.
To guide the restructuring process and determine the allocation of future returns, CENECO leadership is engaging community members and industry representatives across its service area, Lapore added.
“We are launching a collaborative, consultative process to establish a practical, just, transparent, and sustainable framework for managing and distributing the financial resources derived from our shared holdings,” Lapore added.
“Bringing together key sectors from across our franchise area, we look forward to a meaningful discussion that will help shape a business platform that serves the best interests of all stakeholders”, he said.*
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