Semirara to put up 4 more coal-fired power units

The Consunji-led Semirara Mining Corp. said Tuesday its board of directors has approved the planned additional investments in power generation, which would double the capacity of its existing coal-fired power plant to 1,200 megawatts.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Semirara said it would construct four additional power units that could generate 150 MW each or a total of 600 MW in new capacity, using the circulating fluidized bed (CFB) technology.

These facilities will be constructed also in Calaca, Batangas, where the SEM-Calaca Power Corp.’s existing 600-MW coal-fired thermal power plant is located.

According to Semirara, the power plant project will be carried out through a wholly owned subsidiary that the company would be incorporating with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company, however, did not reveal how much it was investing in the proposed facility. Depending on the technology used, a coal-fired power plant was said to cost at least $2 million to produce a megawatt.

Nestor Dadivas, director at SEM-Calaca and concurrent president of DMCI Power Corp., had confirmed that the company plans to break ground within the year for the additional 600-MW facility.

Dadivas told reporters that the ground-breaking would be for the first phase of the expansion project, covering the construction of two additional units that would each have a capacity of 150 MW, or a total of 300 MW. The first phase is expected to be completed by 2014. The second phase for another 300-MW expansion would be completed over the medium term.

Parent firm DMCI Holdings, which owned 56 percent of Semirara, won the bidding for the facility in July 2009 with a price offer of $361.7 million.

DMCI Holdings and Semirara then formed SEM-Calaca to specifically handle the coal facility, as well as to acquire, expand and maintain power-generating plants, develop fuel for generation of electricity, and sell electricity to any person or entity through electricity markets.

In December 2009, SEM-Calaca paid PSALM $150.8 million, representing a 40-percent down payment for the coal power plant. The deal allowed the company to assume ownership of the facility.

The company’s initial investment for the Batangas coal facility was expected to reach $483.6 million, which included the acquisition cost of $361.7 million. The remaining $121.89 million had been earmarked for the rehabilitation and working capital requirements of the power plant.