MGen withdraws bid for 796-MW CBK hydropower plants in Laguna

By Alena Mae S. Flores – August 11, 2024, 7:00 pm
from manilastandard.net

Meralco PowerGen Corp. decided to withdraw its bid for the privatization of the 796.64-megawatt Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) hydroelectric power plant complex in Lumban, Majayjay and Kalayaan, Laguna.

“On CBK, when I joined MGEN, we decided that we limit the limited resources that we have. And today, there’s still the limited portfolio that we have in order to at least provide the value for CBK that would be competitive. We decided not to proceed with that,” Meralco PowerGen president Emmanuel Rubio said.

Meralco PowerGen, the power generating arm of Manila Electric Co., is one of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Corp.’s eight qualified bidders for the CBK power plants.

The other companies are the consortium of Aboitiz Renewables Inc., Electric Power Development Co. and Sumitomo Corp. (Thunder consortium); consortium of China Huadian Hong Kong Company Ltd. and Citicore Renewable Energy Corp.; First Gen; Prime Energy Corp.; Giga Ace 11 Inc.; Korea Water Resources Corp.; Marubeni Corp.; and Semirara Mining and Power Corp.

Five companies—Marubeni, Semirara, Thunder Consortium, First Gen and ACEN Corp.’s Giga Ace 11 participated in the pre-proposal conference.

“I think, let the others with the bigger portfolio. I think that’s how they’re going to justify the participation of ACEN, FirstGen and Aboitiz,” Rubio said.

He said another concern is the impending Green Energy Auction Program 3 which would include pump storage hydro projects.

“And, there’s also a GEAP for pump storage. So, if there’s a GEAP for pump storage, it would be difficult to value CBK if you’re competing with a pump storage and a GEAP. That’s what I think,” Rubio said.

PSALM’s pre-proposal conference provided participants with comprehensive information on the CBK power plant complex, including its technical specifications, operational details and regulatory framework.

Attendees engaged in informative discussions aimed at clarifying project details, understanding bidding requirements, and determining evaluation criteria.

PSALM set the timeline for the bidding and subsequent awarding of the CBK privatization, with the bidding process to commence this year and awarding targeted for next year.

PSALM seeks to team up with a qualified entity capable of leveraging the CBK power plant’s potential to benefit consumers and advance the country’s energy goals.

The CBK plant complex is under a build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer (BROT) and power purchase agreement (PPA) between the CBK Power Company Ltd. and the National Power Corporation for 25 years from its effectivity on Feb. 7, 2001 or until February 2026.

PSALM tapped the Asian Development Bank as the transaction advisor to monetize CBK hydro power plants.

The Department of Finance is hoping to raise P50 billion to P100 billion from the CBK privatization.