AboitizPower affiliated Therma Visayas Inc. has started supplying Toledo City, Cebu with electricity through the first of two 170-MW (150 MW net) baseload units.
The second 170-MW unit is expected to finish by May this year.
“We are happy to have brought Therma Visayas online just in time to support the government’s call for more reliable energy supply as we head towards the midterm elections,” Danel C. Aboitiz, President and COO of AboitizPower’s Coal Business Unit, said.
“By having a reliable baseload plant on the island of Cebu, the residents and investors on the island will enjoy a number of economic and strategic benefits that include increased energy security, more competitive prices, and local employment,” he added.
The plant will supply power to Visayan Electric Co., Inc. (Veco) and electric cooperatives, as well as open access to customers in Luzon and the Visayas. Customers with energy supply contracts will be protected from the volatility of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).
The baseload plant uses the latest circulating fluidized-bed technology (CFB) and best available control technology (BACT) to minimize emissions to world-class levels.
The construction began in 2015 and employed around 5,800 people, most of whom came from host locality.
The facility is a joint venture between Aboitiz Power Corp. and Vivant Corp.
The first unit of GNPower Dinginin baseload power plant with 668 MW gross capacity is also expected to go online later this year. The second unit which also has a gross capacity of 668 MW is expected to start its commercial operations next year.
