Aboitiz Power Corp. said subsidiary Therma Mobile Inc. decided to mothball a 242-megawatt bunker C-fired diesel power plant in Navotas City after it failed to secure a power supply agreement.
Aboitiz Power said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it notified Manila Electric Co. it would physically disconnect from the power distributor’s system and deregister as a trading participant in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market effective Feb. 5, 2019.
“This is due to TMO’s commercial inactivity since June 26, 2018, following the absence of an approved power supply agreement. After evaluating the circumstances and the options available, TMO decided to mothball its bunker C-fired diesel power plants,” Aboitiz Power said.
TMO is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aboitiz Power Corp. through Therma Power Inc., its holding company for thermal energy investments.
It said notices would be sent to Philippine Electricity Market Corp., Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc., Department of Energy and Energy Regulatory Commission, following the notice requirements under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, its implementing rules, and other relevant rules and regulations.
Aboitiz Power chief operating officer Emmanuel Rubio said that while the company decided to mothball the facility, “these are barges so we can relocate where they are needed.
Meanwhile, Science Park of the Philippines Inc., one of the country’s leading industrial estate developers, teamed up with Aboitiz Power for the energy needs of its newest project, the Light Industry & Science Park IV, a 212-hectare park situated in Malvar, Batangas.
LISP IV is part of a mixed-use development called Malvar Cybergreen, which includes commercial, institutional, and residential components. It retains about 35 percent of its original landscape to preserve its natural ecosystem that enhances the environmental quality of the park. It has numerous advantages including the ability to withstand the worst-recorded flooding in the area in a hundred years.
“With our goal to make LISP IV another world-class and sustainable industrial estate similar to our other developments, we saw the need for a partner who shares our commitment to quality, innovation, and sustainability,” said SPPI president Richard Albert Osmond.
Jaime Jose Aboitiz, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Aboitiz Power Distribution Business Group, said that “this new partnership underscores Aboitiz Power and SPPI’s efforts to provide Filipinos and foreign partners with excellent business support and services that are adherent to global standards.”
“Economic zones, through their products and services, are major drivers of our economy. They provide thousands of Filipinos with gainful employment. We are happy to support these zones and their locators through reliable, dependable and efficient power, so they can continue to contribute to the growth of the economy, our people and the country,” Aboitiz said.
Aboitiz Power, through distribution utility Malvar Enerzone Corp., will manage the construction, installation, operation and maintenance of the power distribution of LISP IV for 25 years.