Vivant unit forges 15-year power supply deal for Palawan

MANILA, Philippines - Busuanga Island Electric Cooperative (Biselco) has entered into a 15-year power sale agreement with Calamian Islands Power Corp. (CIPC), a move seen to help meet the growing electricity requirements of its franchise area in Palawan.

CIPC is the project proponent of a new eight-megawatt bunker and 750-kilowatt diesel-fired power generation plants in the municipalities of Coron and Busuanga, respectively.

The company broke ground in April 2013 for the construction of these facilities, which are expected to be complete and commercially available by next year, officials said.

Once the power plants are in place and running, officials said the municipalities of Busuanga and Coron are expected to enjoy more stable power.

The islands are fast becoming popular tourist destinations for both local and foreign nationals and that investments in the tourism industry are expected to grow further with more dependable power supply, CIPC said.

CIPC has obtained a P430-million project financing facility via a ten-year term loan agreement with the Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. to fund the construction of Palawan.

CIPC is a 50-50 joint venture of Vivant Energy Corp. (VEC) and Gigawatt Power Inc. VEC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Vivant Corp. – the publicly-listed holding company of the Garcia-Escano family of Cebu. 

Vivant owns several hydropower projects. Last year, it launched the six-mw Malogo-River hydropower project in Silay, Negros Occidental; estimated to cost P1 billion.

It also has a substantial equity in the Visayan Electric Co. Inc., the second largest utility company in the Philippines, as well as a stake in Cebu Private Power Corp. which owns and operates one of the largest diesel power plants in Cebu.

The company also has a stake in Amlan Hydro Power Inc., which operates the 0.8 MW run-of-river type hydroelectric power plant in Amlan, Negros Oriental.