Alsons to build more power plants in Mindanao

By Danessa Rivera (The Philippine Star) | Updated February 8, 2018 - 12:00am

http://www.philstar.com/business/2018/02/08/1785552/alsons-build-more-power-plants-mindanao

MANILA, Philippines — Alsons Power Group, the energy business of the Alcantara family, has vowed to build more power plants in Mindanao to provide the much needed power supply boost especially with upcoming major road improvements in the region.

Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc. (ACR) chairman and president Tomas Alcantara said the company would support the government’s Build Build Build program, an ambitious infrastructure development plan.

This especially after the Philippines signed a $380-million loan agreement with Manila-based multilateral lender Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Dubbed “Improving Growth Corridors in Mindanao Road Sector Project” (IGCMRSP), the loan will finance 11 big-ticket infrastructure projects to improve road networks in Western Mindanao, particularly in the Zamboanga Peninsula.

The package will bankroll the construction of approximately 280 kilometers of national, primary, secondary and tertiary roads and bridges in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Tawi-Tawi, to be implemented from 2018 to 2023.

Alcantara said the rollout of vital infrastructure projects would help maximize the growth potential and speed up the economic development not only of the Zamboanga Peninsula, but also the entire Mindanao.

“A critical component to sustain economic progress is the availability of a stable, reliable and affordable supply of energy to meet the growing demands of development. As a significant power provider in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Mindanao, we know that we have a major role to play in fueling the economic growth in the region by investing in the energy sector and building power plants,” said Alcantara, who also chairs the Philippines’ Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Business Advisory Council (ABAC).

The company official said Alsons Power would be ready with two power generating plants in the Zamboanga Peninsula, which would be the Mindanao contact point in the planned interconnection of the Mindanao and Visayas power grids.

“The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines’ prospective Visayas-Mindanao interconnection project will link the electrical grids of the two island groups with the linking points in Cebu in the Visayas and Dipolog in Mindanao,” he said.

“By the time of completion of the interconnection project, we will have two operating power plants strategically located in the Zamboanga Peninsula ready to provide power to the Visayas as well,” Alcantara said.

Alsons Power is the primary supplier of electricity to the Zamboanga Peninsula’s largest population center, Zamboanga City, through the its 100-megawatt (MW) Western Mindanao Power Corp. (WMPC) diesel plant.

This year, Alsons Power targets to start construction of the 105-MW San Ramon Power Inc. (SRPI) baseload coal-fired power plant in Talisayan, Zamboanga City. The plant, the biggest power project in Zamboanga Peninsula, is expected to begin operating in 2021 to provide baseload power to Zamboanga City and nearby areas.

Currently, the group operates four power facilities in Mindanao that have helped end the power shortage in the island.

Aside from the WMPC plant in Zamboanga City, the other power plants are: the 103-MW Mapalad Power Corp. diesel plant in Iligan City; the 55-MW Southern Philippines Power Corp. diesel facility in Alabel, Sarangani; and the first 105-MW section of the 210-MW Sarangani Energy Corp. (SEC) baseload coal-fired power plant in Maasim, Sarangani.

SEC’s second 105-MW section is in the advanced stages of construction and is on track to commence in 2019.

Alcantara added that the company has begun preliminary work on a 15-MW run-of-river hydropower project at the Siguil River basin in Maasim, Sarangani, the company’s initial foray in the renewable energy business. The Siguil River Hydro power plant is expected to be commercially operational in 2020.

“We are fully committed to the development of Mindanao, and we will continue supporting government efforts to improve infrastructure in order to propel economic growth. Over the years, we have been investing in the energy business to help lay the groundwork for power security in the region, and we will continue to do our part to help Mindanao achieve its fullest economic potential,” he said.