Aboitiz-led Thunder Consortium has won the bid for the 796.64-megawatt Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) hydroelectric power plants with an offer of 36.266 billion pesos.
Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) president Dennis de la Serna said the offer from the Aboitiz consortium, comprising Aboitiz Renewables Inc., Sumitomo Corp. and Electric Power Development Co. (J Power), met the government’s minimum reserve price.
The Aboitiz Group’s bid surpassed the P19.616 billion offered by the Lopez-led First Gen Prime Energy Corp. and Korea Water Resources Corp. (FGKW Consortium) during the opening of financial proposals on Friday.
“We hope to issue the official notice of award in mid-July,” de la Serna said.
He said the proceeds from the sale of the CBK plants would be used in accordance with the law and in coordination with the Department of Finance and the Bureau of Treasury.
The privatization of the CBK power plants, considered one of the country’s remaining significant power assets, previously attracted interest from nine companies, but only two submitted offers.
The plants, located in the municipalities of Lumban, Majayjay and Kalayaan in Laguna province, are being privatized on an “as is, where is” basis.
The CBK hydro power plants are vital to the Luzon power system. They are contracted to CBK Power Company Ltd. under a 25-year build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer agreement that began in February 2001 and is set to expire in February 2026.
PSALM enlisted the Asian Development Bank as its transaction adviser for the monetization of the CBK hydro power plants.
The Department of Finance was hoping to raise P50 billion to P100 billion from the privatization.