THE generating capacity of the 360-megawatt (MW) Magat hydroelectric power plant might end up to be expanded should its owner SN Aboitiz Power (Snap) Group decide to proceed with its expansion plan for the said power plant.
“We haven’t decided yet to push for 90 MW or 180 MW. And we also have yet to have an investment view on the project” Emmanuel Rubio, Snap Group chief executive, told reporters in an interview.
The Snap official said they will finalize the investment decision by February next year.
Rubio said they are looking at either increasing capacity by 90 MW or 180 MW in view of the transmission constraints at the moment. “If we can work our way with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines then [an additional] 180 MW should not be an issue,” he added.
Apart from rehabilitating and expanding the Magat hydropower plant, Rubio said they are currently working to rehabilitate and upgrade the 75-MW Ambuklao and Binga hydropower plants to increase generating capacity by 105 MW and around 100 MW to 125 MW, respectively.
The rehabilitation and upgrade of the 100-MW Binga plant began this year and is expected to increase its generating capacity to 125 MW by 2014.
The expansion of the Magat, Binga and Ambuklao facilities, said Rubio, will be funded through project financing. “We have the same lenders for the Magat and Binga. And I think they’re happy with our performance and the industry as well. They’re confident on how our economic managers are handling things,” Rubio said.
In September 2008, SNAP-Benguet signed a $100-million loan agreement with the International Finance Corp. (IFC) to help boost electricity output in the Benguet province of Luzon, Philippines, and catalyze economic development and enable SNAP-Benguet to install new turbines and generators at the Ambuklao and Binga hydro facilities. In 2007, IFC announced that it lent SNAP $105 million for the Magat hydroelectric power plant.
SNAP acquired the Magat and Ambuklao-Binga plants through a bidding done by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. after offering to buy the assets for $560 million and $325 million, respectively.
SN Aboitiz Power is jointly owned by SN Power of Norway and the Aboitiz Group.
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