DMCI urges exclusion of off-grid areas from coal ban

Consunji-led DMCI Power Corp. wants off-grid areas to be excluded from the coal moratorium made in 2020 as this would help free power consumers from expensive rates.

“I think ‘yung moratorium dapat hindi kasama yung SPUG (I think the moratorium should not cover SPUG),” Isidro Consunji, its president and chief executive officer, told reporters in an interview late Monday.

He was referring to the Small power utilities group (SPUG), a division of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) that provides electricity to areas not linked to the main transmission grid. SPUG assets are mostly powered by diesel-fired generators.

READ: Weak energy, real estate, mining pull down DMCI profit

Consunji said diesel is “the most expensive,” which would mean users would have to shell out more to settle their bills.

He said that for the DMCI group’s coal plant in Masbate, consumers only need to pay P9 to P10 per kilowatt hour (kWh), considerably lower than the P19 to P23 per kWh being supplied by diesel plants.

DMCI has an existing 15-year supply contract with the Masbate Electric Cooperative. The company operates a 15-megawatt thermal power plant that uses indigenous coal.

Consunji also shared that the group’s proposed coal plant in Palawan was already “pre-approved” even before the moratorium took effect.

Mining operations

The executive said the construction of new coal plants may be barred, but “killing” coal in the power mix would only put an additional burden on Filipino households.

Meanwhile, DMCI Mining Corp. intends to start the development of two new nickel mining sites in Zambales and Palawan provinces this year despite delays encountered in undertaking both projects.

DMCI Mining president Tulsi Das Reyes said the firm already submitted the necessary documents to secure the green light for both sites. INQ