The Manila Electric Co. (MERALCO) has signed an emergency power supply agreement (EPSA) with the Aboitiz-led GNPower Dinginin Ltd. to supply 300 megawatts (MW) of baseload capacity.
In a statement released on Thursday, MERALCO said that the EPSA will last until January 25, 2023. This will partially replace the 670 MW capacity under the distribution company’s PSA with San Miguel Corporation’s South Premiere Power Corporation (SPPC), which was subject to a temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Court of Appeals.
The EPSA has a rate of Php 5.96 per kilowatt hour. MERALCO said that this will lessen its exposure to the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and in turn “partly shield its customers from volatile and potentially higher generation costs.”
Last December 7, SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. (SMCGP) terminated its 670 MW PSA with MERALCO after the issuance of the TRO suspending Energy Regulatory Commission’s (ERC) denial of the rate hike being sought by the two companies.
“MERALCO exhausts all measures to continue supplying its customers with sufficient and reliable power while mitigating the impact of the TRO on its customers,” it said.