State-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) remitted an all-time high P8.96 billion in dividends to the national government for fiscal year 2024, which will go to public service programs such as schools, hospitals and roads, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto said on Tuesday.
“We will make sure every peso you contribute will be felt by the people. It will be used for programs that matter most. It will be invested back into the nation,” Recto said at the turnover ceremony on Monday.
He also said the dividends’ real value “will multiply once it enters the bloodstream of public service—once it becomes more classrooms, hospitals and roads.”
The Department of Finance (DOF) receives dividend remittances from government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) and government financial institutions (GFIs) as mandated by Republic Act No. 7656, or the Dividend Law.
GOCCs and GFIs are required to remit at least 50 percent of their net earnings from the preceding year as dividends to the state treasury.
PSALM President and Chief Executive Officer Dennis Edward Dela Serna said the significant amount came from the corporation’s “strong financial performance (in 2024) and its dedication to good fiscal management.”
“We hope that this remittance will boost the financial support to the nation-building programs of the national government,” he said.
These dividends are categorized as non-tax revenue. The DOF has requested GOCCs to increase dividend remittances to 75 percent from 50 percent.
PSALM Vice President for Finance Manuel Marcos Villalon II said the P8.96 billion remittance comprises 75 percent of their net earnings.
Under the law, PSALM is tasked to undertake the orderly sale and privatization of National Power Corp. (NPC) generation assets and real estate, as well as the management of Independent Power Producer contracts and the liquidation of NPC’s financial obligations in an optimal manner.
Recto, in commending the GOCC for its hefty contribution, said PSALM does the “heavy lifting that many don’t see, from preparing power assets for privatization, guarding the integrity of every bid, and sealing the deals that keep powering the engines of our economy.”
