Aboitiz unit gets permit to run power facility

The Aboitiz-LED Hedcor Inc. has been allowed by the Energy Regulatory Commission to start operating its 3.9-megawatt Irisan 1 hydropower plant in Benguet, a move that can help shore up the existing power capacity in the Luzon grid.

The electricity to be generated by Hedcor’s hydropower facility, according to the ERC, would be fed to the grid and sold to distribution utilities as well as other qualified buyers through bidding in the wholesale electricity spot market (WESM).

To enable Hedcor to start commercial operations, the ERC granted the company a certificate of compliance (COC), a legal requirement prior to a generation company’s power plant commercial operations. Valid for five years, the COC is issued to companies found to be compliant with environmental, technical and financial standards.

This document likewise certifies that the owner of the generation facility was compliant with the restriction on market share limitation, the Philippine Grid Code and Distribution Code, the WESM rules, environmental and other applicable laws.

“The ERC is glad that another plant has been completed and more so since it uses a renewable non-carbon gas emission source.  This plant will fortify the generation capacity of the country and can preempt events where power demand outshadows supply,” said ERC chair Zenaida G. Cruz-Ducut.

“Rest assured that the ERC will be strict in the evaluation of COC applications to ensure stable and quality supply of electricity to the end-users,” ERC added.