3 gencos to supply Meralco’s 1,800-MW power requirement
THREE generation companies (gencos) are set to supply the 1,800-megawatt (MW) power requirement of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the distribution utility said.
In a statement at the weekend, Meralco said it had received bids from four of six generation companies that expressed interest to participate in the competitive selection process.
Of the four bidders, GNPower Dinginin Ltd. Co., Mariveles Power Generation Corp., and Excellent Energy Resources, Inc. (EERI) submitted the lowest bids for the baseload requirement.
GNPower offered a total levelized cost of electricity rate of P6.8580 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 300 MW of the total requirement.
GNPower, a partnership among Aboitiz Power Corp. through unit Thema Power, Inc., ACEN Corp., and Power Partners Ltd. Co., owns a 1,336-MW coal-fired power plant in Mariveles, Bataan.
Mariveles Power offered to supply another 300 MW at P6.9971 per kWh. Excellent Energy, meanwhile, put in the bid for the biggest 1,200-MW supply at P7.1094 per kWh.
Mariveles Power and Excellent Energy are units of San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp., the energy arm of San Miguel Corp.
Masinloc Power Partners Co. Ltd., the other generation company that participated in the bidding, offered to supply 300 MW at P7.1417 per kWh.
“However, with EERI’s bid completing the required 1,800 MW total supply requirement, [Masinloc Power’s] bid was designated as a possible next best bid,” Meralco said.
All offers were below the reserve prices set for the competitive selection process, which is P7.3880 per kWh, according to the Bids and Awards Committee for Power Supply Agreements.
The power supply agreements under the process will cover Meralco’s future baseload requirements for a 15-year period starting December 2024.
The bidding for 1,800 MW is meant to replace the capacity covered by Meralco’s 2021 power supply deals with Excellent Energy and Masinloc Power that were terminated in 2023.
Bids and awards committee Chairman Lawrence S. Fernandez said Meralco had complied with all rules and regulations issued by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and Department of Energy.
“All contracts resulting from this bidding process shall be subjected to regulatory proceedings and evaluation by the ERC,” he added.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
