Naga contract up for bid; auction set for Oct. 10

Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. will finally push through with the bidding of the independent power producer administrator (IPPA) contract for the 146-megawatt Naga power plant complex on Oct. 10.

This will mark the resumption of the sale of government-owned power assets and contracted capacities, after more than a year of suspension while being reviewed by the Department of Energy.

PSALM said it would issue the bidding package, which included the bidding procedures, from July 22 to July 29. Only interested parties that have been issued the bidding package will be allowed to participate further in the bidding process for the appointment as IPP administrator of the Naga capacity.

As a prerequisite to the receipt of the bidding package, interested parties must execute a confidentiality agreement and pay a non-refundable fee of $5,000.

Interested companies could conduct due diligence on the facilities starting July 22 until two days prior to  the bid submission deadline, which is Oct. 10. A pre-bid conference has been scheduled for Aug. 12.

The Naga power plant complex is composed of Cebu thermal power plant 1 with an installed capacity of 50 MW; Cebu thermal power plant 2, 56.8 MW and Cebu diesel power plant 1, 39 MW.

PSALM president and CEO Emmanuel Ledesma Jr. earlier said there were at least 10 companies vying for the Naga IPPA.

While he did not disclose names, earlier reports showed that San Miguel Corp. was interested in bidding for the hydropower facility.

The government has yet to schedule the bidding for other power facilities including the Agus-Pulangi hydropower complex and for several more IPPA contracts for the 640-MW Unified Leyte geothermal power complex; 782- MW Caliraya-Botokan-Kalayaan hydropower plants; 100-MW Western Mindanao Power Corp.; 50-MW Southern Philippines Power Corp.; 200-MW Mindanao coal power plant; and the 92.52-MW Mt. Apo 1 and 2 geothermal power plants.