Manila Times.net
BY EUAN PAULO C. AÑONUEVO REPORTER
THE Department of Energy (DOE) is looking to state-run firms to help bankroll additional generating capacity, even as it has asked existing power plant operators to fast track the rehabilitation of their facilities to head off a supply shortage in two years. DOE Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said the government is studying a number of options to improve the country’s power supply. These include possibly tapping government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to put up diesel and gas-fired power plants.
Besides tapping GOCCs, he has asked generating companies (gencos) to expedite their rehab work.
“I have given two or three letters already to the companies who have bought government assets pleading with them to please accelerate the rehabilitation so you can bring back your capacity to the installed capacities,” Almendras told reporters last week.
A number of gencos have also started looking at how much they can jack up their existing capacities, he said.
“I think I saw a few – about 60 megawatts – already from some people. One plant said they can bring up 20 megawatts by [the second quarter] next year. We’re still trying to collate them,” he added.
Amid insufficient supply in the Visayas and Mindanao, the government projects the country to be short of at least 300 megawatts in 2011 and another 300 megawatts in 2012 unless new generating capacities come in.
Based on the daily power supply and demand outlook from the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), Luzon had reserves of 686 megawatts while the Visyas and Mindanao had deficiencies of 141 megawatts and 108 megawatts, respectively, as of October 9.
Among those asked by the DOE to fast track their projects is the Lopez Group’s First Gen Corp. Its facilities include the 150-megawatt BacMan geothermal power complex, which is not operating, and the 100-megawatt Pantabangan hydro plant.
“Pantabangan is going to be up 120 megawatts soon. We’re assessing BacMan because it just got turned over so we’re assessing on what’s to be done,” Federico Lopez, First Gen chairman and chief executive officer, said separately.
THE Department of Energy (DOE) is looking to state-run firms to help bankroll additional generating capacity, even as it has asked existing power plant operators to fast track the rehabilitation of their facilities to head off a supply shortage in two years. DOE Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said the government is studying a number of options to improve the country’s power supply. These include possibly tapping government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to put up diesel and gas-fired power plants.
Besides tapping GOCCs, he has asked generating companies (gencos) to expedite their rehab work.
“I have given two or three letters already to the companies who have bought government assets pleading with them to please accelerate the rehabilitation so you can bring back your capacity to the installed capacities,” Almendras told reporters last week.
A number of gencos have also started looking at how much they can jack up their existing capacities, he said.
“I think I saw a few – about 60 megawatts – already from some people. One plant said they can bring up 20 megawatts by [the second quarter] next year. We’re still trying to collate them,” he added.
Amid insufficient supply in the Visayas and Mindanao, the government projects the country to be short of at least 300 megawatts in 2011 and another 300 megawatts in 2012 unless new generating capacities come in.
Based on the daily power supply and demand outlook from the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), Luzon had reserves of 686 megawatts while the Visyas and Mindanao had deficiencies of 141 megawatts and 108 megawatts, respectively, as of October 9.
Among those asked by the DOE to fast track their projects is the Lopez Group’s First Gen Corp. Its facilities include the 150-megawatt BacMan geothermal power complex, which is not operating, and the 100-megawatt Pantabangan hydro plant.
“Pantabangan is going to be up 120 megawatts soon. We’re assessing BacMan because it just got turned over so we’re assessing on what’s to be done,” Federico Lopez, First Gen chairman and chief executive officer, said separately.
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