15 Oct 2007
The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) is confident of gaining the full support and participation of the qualified investor groups in the bidding exercise for the 600-megawatt (MW) Batangas (Calaca) Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant to be held tomorrow (16 October) at the PSALM offices in Makati City.
PSALM's confidence was bolstered after it successfully worked with the National Power Corporation in attaching a substantial power supply contract to the Calaca power facility.
The Batangas-based power plant has been allocated a substantial 287 MW power supply contract or about 48% of the plant's rated capacity, providing the new owner a ready market for the electricity that the Calaca power facility will generate. The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will assume the biggest portion of the contracted energy which is equivalent to 169 MW.
The power supply contract, which is part of PSALM's commitment to accelerate the privatization program of the government, adequately addresses investors' apprehension on acquiring the power facility due to the lack or insufficiency of a power supply allocation.
The Calaca facility was first offered to prospective investors in June 2005, but the auction was cancelled after two of the three qualified bidders backed out shortly before the deadline for submission of offers.
The second round of bidding, which was held on 27 April 2006, was also declared a failure because only one bidder made it to the designated venue within the deadline. The subsequent process of open reverse auction likewise failed because the price proposals submitted by the two bidders were below the reserve price.
Strategic Communications and Partnership Division |