The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) yesterday said P204 billion worth of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions are undergoing review.

PCC said its Mergers and Acquisitions Office is evaluating eight M&A transactions as of September 17. Three of these transactions involve finance and insurance, two on energy, two on wholesale and retail trade, and one on real estate.

Michael Aguinaldo, PCC chairman, told reporters in a sideline interview in Makati City, there is healthy appetite for M&As.

“If you look at it from a business perspective, (businesses) always look for instances where they can expand. And sometimes consolidation actually helps,” Aguinaldo said.

He cited the recent acquisition by Ayala Group’s Generic Drugstore of a substantial stake in a Northern Luzon drugstore chain.St. Joseph Drugstore, where the latter will benefit from having the “backing now of the big boys.” 

While the proposed merger of the tollway operations of San Miguel Corp. and the MVP Group is yet to be filed with PCC, Aguinaldo said he expects the parties to inform the Commission due to the size of the transaction.

He said as a matter of policy, PCC is hands-off on transactions involving parties on industries that are regulated. Tollway, he said, can be a natural monopoly.

Aguinaldo expects the PCC to release by the end of the month or the first two weeks of November the findings of the review on the alliance of Meralco PowerGen Corp., Aboitiz Power Corp. and San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp.  for the country’s first and most expansive integrated liquefied natural gas facility in Batangas.