Expansion to meet the growing power needs of Luzon
By Riza T. Olchondra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
12:08 am | Monday, May 5th, 2014
The 460-megawatt expansion of the San Buenaventura coal power plant in Mauban, Quezon province, is up for development starting in the second half of 2014, according to officials of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
“We are busy pushing the development of the Quezon Power expansion of San Buenaventura,” SVP for commercial development Angelito U. Lantin told reporters. He said Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen), a subsidiary of the country’s largest power utility, is now negotiating the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) cost.
The project cost is still “floating,” Lantin said, because MGen is still negotiating the EPC contract with the preferred bidder. The EPC cost may be fixed around July. Ahead of that, MGen is already discussing financing with international and local lenders. About 70 percent of the cost will likely be financed, he said. Contractor bids were received in end-November 2013.
The Meralco subsidiary plans to award the EPC in the third quarter of this year and to start construction in the fourth quarter.
It can be recalled that MGen entered into a joint venture with New Growth B.V., a 98-percent owned subsidiary of Thailand’s Electricity Generating Public Co. or Egco, in August 2013 for the 460MW net expansion of the Quezon power plant. MGen has a 51-percent stake in the project and the rest is held by Egco through New Growth.
The new 460-MW facility is an expansion of the existing 460-MW coal plant owned by Quezon Power Philippines Ltd., which is majority controlled by Egco. The new plant is set to be completed by 2017 to 2018.
MGen recently announced it was expanding to 3,000MW of generation capacity up to 2020. The company’s 300-MW Redondo Peninsula Energy project in Subic Bay has been stalled since 2010 due to legal opposition by environmental groups but MGen has other options, having partnered with Egco and with Global Business Power Corp., one of the largest independent power producers in the Visayas, for projects in Mindanao.
MGen is also studying tie-ups with Chubu Electric of Japan and Shell of Europe. Depending on demand growth from power customers and the Department of Energy’s masterplan for the natural gas sector due by the end of 2013, MGen will decide which partnership to prioritize, Lantin said. MGen and Chubu Electric are jointly studying prospects for a 1,500-MW liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plant in Atimonan, Quezon. MGen and Shell are considering forging an LNG supply partnership for a 1,200-MW natural gas-fired power plant in Batangas province. A 2018 opening is possible for both plants.
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