05:18 AM March 26, 2018
SANTA ANA, Cagayan — The Cagayan
Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) may tap power distribution utility Manila
Electric Co. (Meralco) to ensure a steady power supply for the casino complexes
and support facilities operating here.
Meralco offered to supply an
estimated 10 to 15 megawatts of electricity which the Cagayan Special Economic
Zone and Freeport (CSEZFP) would require this year, Ceza administrator Raul
Lambino said in a statement.
“We have received firm assurances
that Meralco has the capacity to generate and distribute power necessary to
forestall supply shortage at a time when Ceza is anticipating an incoming wave
of new locators,” Lambino said.
‘Positive outlook’
“This gives us a very positive
outlook in the near term,” he said.
Meralco was one of several power
generation and distribution firms interested in working with Ceza.
CSEZFP required sustained
electricity for Eastern Hawaii gaming facility in Barangay Centro, and for
casinos of the First Cagayan Leisure Resort Corp. in Tangatan and San Vicente
villages. It also needed power for its main harbor, Port Irene in Casambalangan
village.
Another casino complex was being
built by a Chinese firm in the former Avalon Resort in Diora-Zinungan.
According to Lambino, the free port
was about 100 kilometers from the nearest distribution line of the National
Grid Corporation of the Philippines in the province of Cagayan.
Coal plant
Lambino said free port tenants had
complained about the unstable power supply in the CSEZFP, which forced scores
of locators to keep their own power generator sets on standby.
The Shanghai Grid Electric Power and
Technology Co. Ltd. had proposed to put up a 200-megawatt coal power plant,
while ECO-GEN Energy Inc. planned to put up hybrid solar and wind generators
under a power purchase agreement. —MELVIN GASCON
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