Alternergy explores JV deals for wind plant
Alternergy Philippine Holdings Corp. is considering options for partnerships to develop its second wind energy project in the Laguna-Rizal area, where its 54-megawatt (MW) Pililla wind farm is already operating.
The Lucio Tan Group is among those being considered a potential partner, Alternergy COO and EVP for business development Knud Hedeager told reporters on the sidelines of the Nordic Business Council Philippines forum on renewable energy.
“It hasn’t been finalized yet, but I think LT Group announced that they were interested in joining,” Hedeager said. “We don’t mind having local investors, it gives a good balance.”
Under a new company called Alternergy Sembrano Wind Corp., the second wind farm will be put up in an area spanning Pililla in Rizal and the towns of Mabitac and Pakil in Laguna.
The existing 54-MW wind farm is operating through the holding firm’s subsidiary, Alternergy Wind One Corp.
Based on the company’s cost estimates for putting up each MW of wind power, the new 72-MW project will need an investment of around $180 million, compared to an investment of $145 million for a capacity of 54 MW.
It will bring Alternergy’s total wind power capacity to 126 MW, he said.
The company is waiting for the Department of Energy to announce the new Feed-in-Tariff incentives (via fixed rates per MW of power output) to start development work, Hedeager said.
In the meantime, there is already an agreement in place for Sembrano with equity partner Equis, a well known Singapore fund, he said.
“Equis, the same partner that supported us on the equity of the Pililla project, is already signed up for Sembrano. So what we need to do is have the regulatory issues resolved, meaning that the (FIT) allocation has to be announced, then we’ll go to the banks and rev up the debt portion of the financing,” Hedeager said.
Last year, Lucio K. Tan Jr., son of taipan Lucio Tan, said the LT Group was interested in developing more renewable energy projects, particularly wind power projects.
