DMCI Power invests P745M to boost Masbate supply

By Myrna M. Velasco – December 6, 2022, 6:30 AM
from Manila Bulletin

DMCI Power Corporation (DPC), the off-grid energy solutions company of the Consunji group, has coughed up P745 million worth of fresh investment to augment power supply into brownout-stricken Masbate province.

The company said the new investment ensures the installation of 11-megawatt generating facility, boosting Masbate’s electricity supply by as much as 21 percent.

According to DPC President Antonino E. Gatdula, Jr., one plant is already operational while the other is set to run within the month. Gatdula said the “investment is in line with our commitment to provide adequate, reliable and dependable power supply in missionary areas” or jurisdictions that are not physically connected to the main power grids.

On Nov. 4 this year, DPC deployed and operated a 3.0MW diesel plant in Pio V. Corpuz while final testing and commissioning of another 8.0MW diesel power generating facility in Cataingan is ongoing and target commercial operation date is by mid-December.

Based on data provided by the Consunji firm, its energy sales in Masbate in the initial nine months of this year had escalated by 11-percent to 111 gigawatt-watt hours from last year’s 100GWh.

The company underscored that with the additional plants, DPC already deployed consolidated installed capacity of 148MW located across Masbate, Palawan and Oriental Mindoro. The off-grid solutions being offered by DMCI Power to consumers in these domains include diesel, bunker and thermal generating facilities.

Forthcoming in the company’s target will be the integration of solar in its power mix for the off-grid domains – including for the capacity buildup that it has been pursuing for Masbate province.

“Next year, we are targeting to include solar energy in our mix. We have a 4.0MW solar plant that’s set to operate in Masbate by fourth quarter of 2023,” Gatdula said.