Sociedad Electrica del Sur Oeste S.A.

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What it is

SEAL is a Peruvian state enterprise that distributes and commercialises electricity in the Arequipa region. Its service territory covers the cities of Arequipa, Mollendo, Camaná and the Majes Valley.

The company was founded on 18 March 1905 under the name Sociedad Eléctrica de Arequipa Ltda. Since 1994, when it transferred its generation and transmission activities to newly created entities, SEAL has focused exclusively on electricity distribution within its concession area.

As of September 2025, it serves 516,447 active customers — roughly half a million households and businesses — making it one of Peru’s larger regional electricity distributors.

Who owns it

The Peruvian state controls the company decisively. 88.72% of SEAL’s shares are owned by FONAFE, Peru’s National Fund for Financing State Enterprise Activity, which in turn reports to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

The remaining 11.28% trades in the market as Class D shares (ticker SEALDC1).

Among the private minority, the largest single outside holder is a Panamanian vehicle: the company’s own shareholding register shows Grupo Infra y Energía S.A. holds 10.06% of capital through Class D shares, with the remaining minority spread among small domestic and foreign investors.

Who runs it

The General Manager (CEO equivalent) is Ing. Markpool De Taboada Quenaya, and the Board is presided over by Brigitt Bruna Bencich Aguilar as President of the Board of Directors.

Ms Bencich Aguilar was designated to that role on 9 April 2025.

SEAL operates under FONAFE’s governance framework, which sets the policies and standards applicable to all state enterprises under Peru’s Ministry of Economy and Finance. The company is also supervised by OSINERGMIN, Peru’s energy regulator.

The money, in plain words

In 2024 SEAL brought in S/ 787.61 (US$232)M (~$231.6M) in revenue, up 4.17% from the S/ 756.11 (US$222)M recorded the year before, and turned S/ 80.63 (US$24)M (~$23.7M) of that into net profit — itself 9.71% higher than 2023. It keeps about 10 cents of profit from every sol of electricity sold — a net profit margin of 10.2% (our calculation), respectable for a regulated utility.

At a share price of S/ 3.37 (US$0.99)and with 230.4 million shares outstanding, the company is valued by the market at roughly S/ 776 (US$228)M (~$228M) — a price-to-earnings ratio of about 9.6× (our calculation), which is inexpensive by regional utilities standards. Energy volumes sold reached 1,191,460 MWh in 2024, a 7.78% increase over the prior year — meaning growth is coming from real demand, not just tariff inflation.

For investors, the standout number is the income paid out to shareholders. The dividend yield on Class D shares was 8.13% in 2024, with a payout ratio of 78.25% of net profit returned to investors.

That is a yield roughly double Peru’s inflation rate, generated by a state-backed monopoly distributor.

What it is doing now

Through September 2025, SEAL had delivered 1,040,586 MWh of electricity, a 5.47% increase over the same period of 2024, suggesting the growth momentum from 2024 has carried into the current year. The customer base has grown to 516,447 — up 3.55% year-on-year, as urban expansion and rural electrification add steady new connections.

The most recent governance event was a leadership change at the top: Ms Bencich Aguilar took the board chair in April 2025, overseeing a management transition. The company is also progressing on renewable self-generation, having earlier announced plans for a small solar mini-plant in Arequipa — a modest but symbolic step for a distributor dependent on purchased power.

What to watch

• Tariff review cycle: SEAL’s revenue is regulated — every tariff reset by OSINERGMIN directly sets the ceiling on how much of rising costs it can pass through to customers.
• FONAFE dividend policy: As the state takes 88.72% of any distribution, government fiscal needs can influence how much of the annual profit is paid out versus retained for grid investment.
• Customer and volume growth: With over 516,000 customers and rising, Arequipa’s continued urban expansion is SEAL’s most natural growth lever — but it also requires capital spending on network infrastructure.
• Leadership continuity: The April 2025 board change is still fresh; how the incoming chair steers investment priorities and relations with FONAFE is worth monitoring.

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This is news, not investment advice.