Posted on September 26, 2016
SEMIRARA Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) has issued a
warning on the possible impact of the closure of its coal mine in Antique province,
citing a likely increase in power rates if coal supply is cut.
“The closure of the Semirara coal
mine would have been disastrous for the economy and the public, and possibly
could create unnecessary political risks for the administration,” said Ruben P.
Lozada, SMPC resident manager, over the weekend.
“Without coal, there would be outages, business disruption and retrenchment, and, in the case of affected cement companies, perhaps a supply lack that could affect infrastructure and housing,” he added.
Mr. Lozada’s statement came after SMPC secured a report from the Department of Energy (DoE) validating the company’s assessment that its coal mining operation adheres to environment standards.
“We always protect the environment while extracting coal. The audit reports confirm that commitment. We are responsible miners and keep upgrading our systems and processes when new technologies come to the market,” Mr. Lozada said.
Aside from the DoE audit, SMPC also secured a separate report from the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, saying the company complies with state regulations on protecting the environment.
SMPC accounts for 97% of local coal production, which is used by power generation companies and cement manufacturers.
“Coal is a constant daily source of electricity and is among the cheapest feedstock compared to bunker and gas, among others,” SMPC said, adding that the fossil fuel accounts for 45% of total power generated last year.
“Without coal, electricity would be more expensive,” it added.
It cited data for August when the coal plants owned by an affiliate sold power to distribution utility Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) at P2.517 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Mr. Lozada said the price was the lowest among Meralco’s sources as all others ranged “above P3 all the way to more than P8” per kWh.
On Friday, SMPC told the stock exchange it had received the audit report from the DoE that verified the environmental compliance of the company’s coal mining operation.
In its disclosure, SMPC attached a letter dated Sept. 21 from Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi addressed to Isidro A. Consunji, the company’s chairman. The letter included a report on the department’s audit conducted on Aug. 25 on SMPC’s coal operating contract at Caluya, Antique.
“The DoE audit team verified that the mining operation of SMPC does not discharge toxic materials to the mangroves, the sulfur content of the coal is below 1%, there is no seaweed farm affected, and the dumping of overburden materials does not affect the nearby housing communities,” a summary of the report said.
“The audit team verified that the dumping of overburden materials does not affect the nearby housing communities as they are dumped within the approved mining operation area far from the residential areas in Barangay Semirara,” it concluded.
“Without coal, there would be outages, business disruption and retrenchment, and, in the case of affected cement companies, perhaps a supply lack that could affect infrastructure and housing,” he added.
Mr. Lozada’s statement came after SMPC secured a report from the Department of Energy (DoE) validating the company’s assessment that its coal mining operation adheres to environment standards.
“We always protect the environment while extracting coal. The audit reports confirm that commitment. We are responsible miners and keep upgrading our systems and processes when new technologies come to the market,” Mr. Lozada said.
Aside from the DoE audit, SMPC also secured a separate report from the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, saying the company complies with state regulations on protecting the environment.
SMPC accounts for 97% of local coal production, which is used by power generation companies and cement manufacturers.
“Coal is a constant daily source of electricity and is among the cheapest feedstock compared to bunker and gas, among others,” SMPC said, adding that the fossil fuel accounts for 45% of total power generated last year.
“Without coal, electricity would be more expensive,” it added.
It cited data for August when the coal plants owned by an affiliate sold power to distribution utility Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) at P2.517 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Mr. Lozada said the price was the lowest among Meralco’s sources as all others ranged “above P3 all the way to more than P8” per kWh.
On Friday, SMPC told the stock exchange it had received the audit report from the DoE that verified the environmental compliance of the company’s coal mining operation.
In its disclosure, SMPC attached a letter dated Sept. 21 from Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi addressed to Isidro A. Consunji, the company’s chairman. The letter included a report on the department’s audit conducted on Aug. 25 on SMPC’s coal operating contract at Caluya, Antique.
“The DoE audit team verified that the mining operation of SMPC does not discharge toxic materials to the mangroves, the sulfur content of the coal is below 1%, there is no seaweed farm affected, and the dumping of overburden materials does not affect the nearby housing communities,” a summary of the report said.
“The audit team verified that the dumping of overburden materials does not affect the nearby housing communities as they are dumped within the approved mining operation area far from the residential areas in Barangay Semirara,” it concluded.
No comments:
Post a Comment