MPIC raising power generation capacity
Infrastructure holding firm Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) plans to supply more power to the growing economy by building at least 1,600 megawatts of “predominantly ultrasupercritical coal-fired” additional generation capacity costing about $3.2 billion by 2022.
The group also plans to bid for the power and water/wastewater requirements of the Clark Green City project of the Bases Conversion Development Authority. The water and wastewater components are estimated to cost P5 billion each or a total of P10 billion.
Given the scale of the Clark Green City project—9,000 hectares including the new airport—Pangilinan said Meralco would bid for the power generation concession while MetroPac Water would bid for the water and wastewater projects.
“Recognizing the need for better infrastructure in the country, each of our businesses at MPIC is actively contributing to the fabric of our nation and enhancing its capacity to serve the public,” MPIC chair Manuel V. Pangilinan said in a report to shareholders.
Pangilinan said the bulk of the additional power generation capacity within the group would come from the 1,200-MW coal-fired plant in Atimonan, Quezon.
MPIC president Jose Ma. Lim said operating unit Manila Electric Co. alone was looking to develop at least 1,500 MW of additional capacity by 2021, representing the utility’s allowable throughput. This capacity includes the share of equity partners in each project.
“Coal, even with the clean coal technologies we are committed to, may not be popular with certain segments of society but remains for the time being the most efficient way to supply the essential base load to provide stable power to homes and businesses throughout the country,” Lim said.
“We are also committed to seeking increased investment in renewable energy compatible with the demand profile of the Philippines,” he said, adding that the developments in the renewable energy space were very fast, such that it would be difficult to determine the group’s desired energy mix at this time.
MPIC chief financial officer David Nicol said that based on the estimated $2-million/MW project cost, the additional 1,600-MW pipeline would have a gross project cost of $3.2 billion. As the group typically gets half of the equity share in each project, gross spending for the group would be about $1.6 billion and if 30 percent of each project would be funded by equity and 70 percent covered by financing, Nicol estimated this pace of expansion would require $500 million to $600 million in equity.
Nicol said the group was prioritizing the Atimonan project, which was seen to offer “great value for consumers because of the high efficiency of the plant.”
Through Global Business Power, the group has 854 MW of power generation capacity while Alsons Thermal Energy Corp.— where it has a 50-percent stake— has about 100 MW that will soon be doubled, Lim said.
Meralco, which is allowed to generate 50 percent of its throughput, is now constructing the 500-MW San Buenaventura Power Plant in Mauban, Quezon, the first coal plant in the Philippines to utilize the state-of-the-art supercritical technology proven to increase operational efficiencies and significantly reduce emissions.
