Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc. expects to sign a financing agreement with three local banks in December to raise P30 billion for the construction of the first phase of a 600-megawatt coal-fired power facility in Subic Bay Freeport in Zambales province, an executive said Tuesday.
“It’s three banks. We can sign the loan agreement by December but the drawdown, we have to wait for the ERC [Energy Regulatory Commission] to approve. Financial close depends on the approval of the PSA [power supply agreement],” RP Energy project development manager Angelito Lantin told reporters.
Lantin said the P30-billion loan would represent 75 percent of the project cost for the first phase of the project.
RP Energy is a joint venture of Meralco PowerGen Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Manila Electric Co.; Therma Power Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aboitiz Power; and Taiwan Cogeneration International Corp.
RP Energy and Meralco have a pending joint application with ERC for the approval of a PSA for 225 MW of the 300-MW phase one of the project.
The company will sell its remaining 75-MW output to Aboitiz Energy Solutions Inc.
RP Energy was already granted an environmental clearance certificate by the Environment Department for the project.
The company is finalizing all development works to enable it to achieve financial closing and commence the construction of the 300-MW facility immediately upon the issuance of the ERC approval.
RP Energy signed contracts with Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. Ltd. and Azul Torre Construction Inc. on Oct. 13.
The project qualified for incentives from the Board of Investments on June 1. It is expected to start commercial operation by early 2020.
Aboitiz Power president Antonio Moraza earlier said RP Energy planned to start construction of the long-delayed Subic coal plant by January.
“I think we [can] break ground mid-January,” Moraza said.