Meralco sets power plant in Quezon

The power generation arm of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is set to put up a 460-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Quezon in partnership with Thailand’s Electricity Generating Public Co. Ltd. (Egco).

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Meralco reported that its board of directors has approved a resolution authorizing its wholly owned subsidiary Meralco PowerGen Corp. to “execute a joint development agreement and other related agreements with [Egco].”

These agreements are expected to cover the planned coal expansion in Mauban, Quezon, where Egco operates another 460-MW coal plant through Quezon Power Philippines Ltd. (QPPL). Egco holds a 98-percent stake in QPPL, which supplies power to Meralco.

Meralco PowerGen was expected to hold a 51-percent equity in the planned coal expansion project, according to company managing director Aaron Domingo.

It was earlier reported that the awarding of an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the power project was expected by September this year while actual construction could start by June 2014. The parties target to commission the facility by 2017.

Egco, the first independent power producer in Thailand, is a holding company with investments in power generation and supply as well as comprehensive energy services providing operation, maintenance, engineering and construction services to power plants and other industries in Thailand and overseas.

Meralco has been aggressively pursuing power generation projects in a bid to build a diversified power portfolio that can generate 2,700 megawatts over the medium to long term. Amy R. Remo