InterAksyon.com means BUSINESS
MANILA, Philippines - Aboitiz Power Corp. (AP) has lined up a number of projects to augment Mindanao's energy supply.
In a media briefing, Erramon I. Aboitiz, AP president and chief executive officer, said the company will invest P35 billion to put up 354 megawatts of power generating capacity in the region.
"Our long-term investments in both power generation and distribution in Mindanao are a testament to our commitment to be part of the economic development of the region. We have been in Mindanao since the 1930s and want to continue to be part of its future growth," Aboitiz said.
The additional capacity, which is expected to fill Mindanao's large power deficit, will come from the 300-megawatt clean coal facility of Therma South Inc. and the 54-megawatt run-of-river hydro plants of Hedcor Inc. Therma South and Hedcor are wholly-owned AP subsidiaries.
Mindanao needs 1,597 megawatts a day, but existing capacity in the region runs to only 1,261 megawatts as of April.
More than half of the power plants in the island source their energy from the Agus and Pulangi hydro stations, which are no longer capable of generating power based on their original installed capacity.
“There is an urgent need to implement a viable power strategy for Mindanao that will attract long-term investments in power, diversify the power sources and create a competitive supply market. Let us learn from the past and not provide band aid solutions or even worse, solve the problem with expensive solutions that will hound us in the future,” Aboitiz said.
AP subsidiary Therma Marine Inc. (TMI) is running its 200-megawatt bunker-fired power barges moored in Nasipit, Agusan del Norte and Maco, Compostela Valley in Davao. They provide 192 megawatts to 23 electric cooperatives, distribution utilities and industries in the region.
Contrary to reports they are charging more than P14 per kilowatt-hour for the barges' output, Aboitiz said TMI is the cheapest, and the most efficient oil-based power facility in Mindanao, charging an average of P8.29 per kilowatt-hour.
Of that amount, 90 percent is earmarked for fuel and other consumables, while the remaining 10 percent pays for fixed costs, such as salaries, insurance, repairs and maintenance, and debt service, with any residual amount representing the company’s return on its investment.
InterAksyon.com means BUSINESS
BUSINESS NEWS
