First Gen launches online ESG platform

Danessa Rivera - The Philippine Star August 27, 2021 | 12:00am
https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/08/27/2122833/first-gen-launches-online-esg-platform

MANILA, Philippines — Lopez-led First Gen Corp. launched an online environment, social and governance (ESG) platform which lays down its approach to sustainability to attract investors who prefer stocks with strong ESG commitments.

“We are pleased to announce the launch of online ESG profile. By pioneering this effort, we are early adopters of a transparent, comprehensive, and real time platform to share our company wide ESG commitments. While this summarizes our ESG efforts, we also plan to use this as a tool to benchmark against international best practices,” First Gen finance vice president and investor relations (IR) department head Valerie Dy Sun-Lim said in a statement.

The online ESG profile supports the Lopez group’s newly crafted mission of “forging collaborative pathways for a decarbonized and regenerative future,” she said.

Apart from providing insightful and easily accessible information on the positive impact it has across the three ESG areas, the profile captures the group’s strategic journey towards regeneration and its commitment to all its stakeholders.

This profile allows stakeholders to conveniently review and stay in touch with First Gen’s rapidly evolving ESG practices.

“As ESG standards gain stronger traction globally, we acknowledge the need for greater transparency and easier access to companies’ ESG-related information. This initiative is a collaborative effort across the business, including our external partner, Churchgate Partners,” Dy Sun-Lim said.

Churchgate Partners is an international IR firm providing market analysis and communication solutions across global capital markets through ESG World, an online proprietary platform it developed.

“The profile succinctly captures the multiple ESG touch points being implemented across the firm, management’s commitment to long-term sustainability and the highly impactful nature of the underlying business as a clean fuel independent power producer,” Churchgate Partners chairman Sumir Bhardwaj said.

First Gen is a leading independent power producer in the Philippines that primarily utilizes clean and indigenous fuels such as natural gas, geothermal energy from steam, hydro-electric, wind, and solar power.

It has 3,495 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity in its portfolio, which account for 19 percent of the country’s gross generation.

First Gen is a subsidiary of Lopez holding firm First Philippine Holdings Corp., one of the most established conglomerates in the Philippines, and has over 20 years of experience in power development.