SUBSIDIARIES of ACEN Corp., First Gen Corp., San Miguel Global Holdings Corp. (SMGP), and Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower) wish to bid for Manila Electric Co.’s (Meralco) 200-megawatt (MW) renewable energy (RE) supply requirements.
All 15 corporations that expressed interest and attended Thursday’s pre-bid conference were major players within the country’s power sector.
Ayala-led ACEN Corp., together with its subsidiaries SanMar Solar, Negros Island Solar, and Sinocalan Solar Power, indicated interest in supplying Meralco’s renewable energy needs.
Lopez-led First Gen and its subsidiaries, including First Gen Hydro, Energy Development Corp., BacMan Geothermal, and Greencore Geothermal, also participated within the conference.
SMGP subsidiaries Mariveles Power Generation, and Sual Power expressed their interest in joining the bidding.
Aboitiz Power Corp.’s subsidiaries, including AP Renewable Energy, GNPower Mariveles Energy Center, Therma Luzon, and Therma Visayas, are also expected to participate. GNPower Kauswagan is owned by Power Partners, a partner of AboitizPower.
AboitizPower, SMGP, First Gen, and ACEN were the country’s leading power producers, dominating the national market share last 12 months, in response to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).
Because the bid submission deadline on Feb. 16 is after the proposed effective date of Jan. 26, Meralco said the latter will probably be moved depending on when the ERC approves the resulting power supply contract.
The four-year agreement goals to assist Meralco comply with the Renewable Portfolio Standards, which require distribution utilities to source a portion of their electricity from eligible renewable energy sources.
Suppliers, whether renewable, conventional, or a mix, can fulfill the availability requirements from their very own plants or the spot market, provided that renewable energy certificates (RECs) are guaranteed. Each REC represents a megawatt-hour of electricity generated from eligible RE sources.
“As a highly regulated entity, Meralco stays fully committed to upholding the best standards of transparency, fairness, and regulatory compliance throughout the CSP (competitive selection process),” said Lawrence S. Fernandez, chairman of Meralco’s bids and awards committee for power supply agreements.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc. Hastings Holdings, a unit of PLDT Helpful Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera