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A UNIT of Belgian firm Suez-Tractebel S.A. is seeking loan
assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance the
refurbishment of the Calaca coal-fired thermal power plant.
In its loan document dated April, the
Manila-based lender said Emerald Energy Corp. (EEC), a company Suez
formed, is seeking project loan financing worth $120 million. The
Suez unit also wants the ADB to issue a $90-million political risk
guarantee.
State-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities
Management Corp. (Psalm) awarded EEC the right to purchase the
Calaca power plant for $786.53 million last year.
Suez is an international industrial and services
group in the energy and environment sectors, with over 150,000 staff
working on four continents serving 200 million people in 3,000
municipalities, and with annual revenues of over $50 billion.
The ADB said the board approval is expected by
June this year.
The project involves the refurbishment of an
existing coal fired thermal power station with no capacity expansion
under the plan.
“Refurbishment activities are mainly
associated with replacing existing equipment that has been in
service for 10 years to 20 years, but the fundamental plant design
or capacity will not be altered, and local and imported coal will
remain the primary fuel,” the ADB said.
The lender said the project will also help
improve the investment climate by increasing the reliability of
generating capacity for commercial and industrial centers.
“The successful acquisition and operation of
the Calaca plant by a reputable foreign entity will boost market
confidence and encourage the further privatization of [National
Power Corp.’s] assets and the entry of new players into the
market,” the ADB said.
The lender said the project will enhance
competition in the generator market and, in the long run, help drive
down the price of electricity.
State-owned Napocor built the Calaca, a
600-megawatt conventional, pulverized coal–fired power plant. It
consists of two 300-megawatt coal-fired units commissioned in 1984
and 1995.
The plant uses local coal from Semirara Mining
Corp. and imported coal from Australia and Indonesia.
The Calaca facility has been allocated a l
287-megawatt power supply contract, or about 48 percent of the
facility’s rated capacity. This will provide the new owner a ready
market for the electricity the plant will generate. Manila Electric
Co. will buy the biggest portion of the contracted energy equivalent
to 169 megawatts.
-- Darwin G. Amojelar
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