The Alcantaras’ Alsons Power Group has lauded the recent Supreme Court decision validating the government’s sale in 2012 of two diesel power plants to its subsidiary, a deal that allowed the group to supply additional electricity to Mindanao during critical times.
In a statement, Alsons Power said the SC had upheld the Commission on Audit (COA)’s approval of the negotiated sale of the two power plants with a combined capacity of up to 103 megawatts in Iligan City.
The SC en banc dismissed a petition that questioned the valuation used during the negotiated sale of the diesel facilities by the Iligan City government to the group’s Conal Holdings Corp. (CHC) in September 2012.
“The group behind the petition had opposed the sale of the diesel assets to Alsons Power’s CHC alleging that the sale had given unwarranted benefit to CHC,” Alsons Power said. The petitioner had alleged that the valuation process used by COA was incorrect.
The diesel plants are now owned by Mapalad Power Corp. (MPC), another Alsons unit, which began operating the facility in 2013.
Alsons CEO Tirso Santillan Jr. said the SC ruling validated the agreement entered by the parties, adding that the diesel plants have been able to supply electricity to certain areas of Mindanao during the critical periods.
“Upon the COA’s approval of the sale, we were able to rehabilitate and operate the MPC Iligan Diesel Power Plants just in time to deliver much needed power to Iligan City and other key areas in Mindanao during the May 2013 elections,” said Santillan.
“During those days of power shortage in Mindanao in 2013 to around 2015, the timely operation of the MPC plant was able to help provide relief to the people of Iligan, Zamboanga City, General Santos, Pagadian, Butuan and other major cities in the island,” he added.
The Iligan diesel plants were covered by the build, operate, transfer (BOT) agreements between Northern Mindanao Power Corp. and state-run National Power Corp. (Napocor).
When the BOT arrangement ended, Napocor assumed ownership and possession of both plants in 2003 and 2004, respectively. The Iligan City government acquired the plants and thereafter privatized them through negotiated sale.
Currently, Alsons has four plants under its portfolio with a total generating capacity of 468 MW, catering to more than 8 million people in 14 cities and 11 provinces in Mindanao. INQ