Power retailer Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is inviting interested power generation companies to participate in the competitive selection process (CSP) or bidding for 1,200 megawatts (MW) of baseload requirement to ensure sufficient and reliable supply for its customers.
Meralco said in a statement Thursday the Department of Energy (DOE) issued a certificate of conformity on the terms of reference (TOR) for the 15-year power supply agreement/s (PSAs) which would be effective once approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).
Meralco, through its bids and awards committee, issued the invitation to bid for the CSP with the submission of expression of interest due on Dec. 11, 2023.
It set the pre-bid conference for interested bidders on Dec. 18, 2023 and the bid submission deadline on Jan. 23, 2024.
The TOR states that pursuant to the DOE’s advisory on the conduct of CSP for power supply using indigenous natural gas as transition fuel, “power suppliers with natural-gas fired power plants are highly encouraged to participate in the bidding.”
It said the initial 810-MW baseload capacity needed by Meralco should be available on Dec. 26, 2023, while an additional 200 MW and 190 MW would be needed by Feb. 26 and Mar. 26, 2024, respectively.
The CSP, based on Meralco’s DOE-approved power supply procurement plan, aims to meet the power distributor’s future capacity requirements, including the 1,000 MW (net) supply covered by its PSAs with change in circumstance cases that are pending resolution.
This will replace the terminated South Premiere Power Corp. deal under ERC Case No. 2019-081RC, San Miguel Energy Corp. (now known as Sual Power Inc.) PSA under ERC Case No. 2019-083RC and the failure of negotiations with Solar Philippines Batangas Baseload Corp. for a 200-MW PSA.
Meralco’s CSP for a 15-year contract for 1,800 MW of baseload supply starting December 2024 is also ongoing.
Six interested parties expressed interest, offering a combined total capacity of over 3,000 MW. These are First Gen Corp. subsidiary First NatGas Power Corp., Aboitiz Power Corp.’s GNPower Dinginin, SP New Energy and three companies owned by San Miguel Corp. namely, Mariveles Power Generation Corp., Excellent Energy Resources Inc. (EERI) and Masinloc Power Partners Co. Ltd. (MPPCL).