PSALM sells decommissioned Bataan thermal power plant to trading firm

MANILA, Philippines - The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) yesterday announced that it has sold the decommissioned 225-megawatt Bataan Thermal Power Plant through a negotiated sale to a local scrap metals trading firm Rubenori Inc.

The bidding, held last April 16, was the third decommissioned plant successfully bid out by the power privatization firm.

With an offer of $2.859 million, Rubenori met the reserve price set by the PSALM Board for the decommissioned power asset located in Limay, Bataan.

The sale covers the structures, plant equipment, auxiliaries and accessories, but not the underlying land.

Rubenori is primarily engaged in the trading of scrap metals for both the domestic and the foreign markets. It acquires scrap materials, especially from non-operational power plants, sugar and paper mills, mining, and other industrial machineries.

In pursuing its business objectives, Rubenori maintains a strategic relationship with the Japanese firm Sato & Co. Ltd., which has almost 50 years experience in recovering and recycling iron and non-ferrous metals.

PSALM will declare Rubenori as the winning bidder for the BTPP after it has verified the accuracy, authenticity, and completeness of all the submitted bid documents.

The Notice of Award will then be issued to Rubenori, formally declaring the company as the new owner of the retired power plant.

PSALM decided to conduct negotiations after the third round of bidding for the BTPP held on Feb. 20, 2009 failed because the only compliant bidder did not meet the reserve price set by the government.

The BTPP was first auctioned off on April 20, 2005, but the bidding was declared a failure because only one bidder showed up. The second round of bidding held on Sept. 30, 2005 also failed for the same reason.

Aside from the BTPP, PSALM successfully bid out the 200-MW Manila Thermal Plant on April 25, 2008 and the 54-MW Cebu II on Jan. 22, 2009.

The other decommissioned assets slated to be sold this year include the 104-MW Aplaya Power Plant, the 22.3-MW General Santos Diesel Power Plant, and the 850-MW Sucat Thermal Power Plant.