2 Korean firms eye Conal coal project

MANILA, Philippines - Two Korean power firms have been shortlisted by Conal Holdings Corp. (CHC), the power generation arm of the Alcantara group, to handle the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of its 200-megawatt clean coal power project in Sarangani, Mindanao.

Jose Nocos, CHC vice president for business development, told reporters that the company is already in the final round of negotiations on EPC with Daelim Industrial Co. Ltd. of Korea and the consortium of Hyundai Engineering and Construction Corp. and Hyundai Corp.

Daelim group’s principal activity is engineering and construction business. It operates through four segments: construction, engineering, plant and housing.

Just like Daelim, Hyundai companies are also involved in the construction of power facilities. “We expect to award the EPC contract to one of these two companies within the month of April,” Nocos said.

After the awarding of the EPC, he said they would be ready to launch the project by next month.

The actual construction of the power plant, Nocos said, is expected by September this year. 

He said if their timetable will flow as planned, they would complete the construction by July 2013.

“This power station will give consumers and industrial users in the region a steady, reliable and cheap supply of electricity,” Nocos said.

Energy officials have repeatedly warned that unless new power plants are commissioned in the next three years, Mindanao could plunge into a deep power supply crises worse than the situation in the early 90s.

Meanwhile, the Mindanao Electric Power Alliance (MEPA) has crafted its Statement of Commitment which enables the parties to acknowledge the significance of their individual and collective contribution and the importance of cooperation in the field of energy as a major strategy embodied in their respective policies to achieve energy security.

In this light, the stakeholders of the electric power industry in Mindanao, committed to fully cooperate in ensuing that there will be adequate and reliable supply of electric power in the Mindanao region.