The Philippines’ 455 MW coal-fired power plant, the first in the country with supercritical technology, is nearing its final stages of construction with 90 percent completed.
“SBPL [San Buenaventura Power Ltd.] is on its 31st month of EPC [engineering, procurement and construction] implementation with overall progress at almost 90 percent and is on track for project completion in September 2019,” said Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen) President Rogelio Singson.
SBPL partnered with MGen and New Growth BV, a wholly owned subsidiary of Electricity Generating Public Co. Ltd. of Thailand, to install the power plant in Mauban, Quezon.
Singson said, “Most major equipment is on site.”
EPC contractor of the project is Daelim Industrial Co. Ltd. and Mitsubishi Corp.
Once the plant is finished, the power it would generate will be sold to the country’s biggest distribution utility Meralco under a 20-year power-supply agreement.
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has already approved the PSA needed for the SBPL 455 MW-capacity.
The SBPL plant can help meet the growing demand of electricity, particularly in Luzon which is responsible for about 70 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.
The project represents MGEN and EGCO Group’s commitment to attain energy security, which will benefit the Philippine economy.
It is also connected to MGEn’s goal to have a power-generation portfolio of about 3,000 MW.
In order to fund the project, SBPL entered an agreement with local banks to loan P42.15-billion for the project.
Among the lenders are BDO Unibank Inc., China Banking Corp., Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., Philippine National Bank, and Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.
BDO Unibank Trust and Investments Group acted as the loan facility agent, while Metrobank Trust Banking Group is a collateral trustee.
Joint bookrunners and joint issue coordinators are BDO Capital and Investment Corp. and First Metro Investment Corp. The lead managers for the transaction are Chinabank, PNB Capital and Investment Corp. and RCBC Capital Corp.
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