MANILA, Philippines – Delta P, Palawan’s biggest independent power producer, recently bagged a new power contract to supply an additional 26.6 megawatts of electricity in the island province.
The firm was awarded the 15-year power supply contract after successfully passing the Competitive Selection Process and Swiss Challenge conducted by the Bids and Awards Committee of the Palawan Electric Cooperative (Paleco).
Paleco chairman Raymund Acosta issued the Notice of Award to Delta P. He said the additional capacity would address the current power shortage being experienced in Palawan.
The 26.6 megawatt power project is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2016 at an estimated cost of P1.6 billion. Gigawatt Power Inc. (GPI), a major shareholder of Delta P, will supply the brand new bunker fueled engines. These will be shipped to Palawan from their current storage area in Bauang, La Union.
Delta P is one of three independent power producers in Palawan. It operates a 16-MW bunker-fired power plant comprising four units of 4-MW generator sets. However, growing consumer demand has led to a serious power shortage in the province.
“We will strive to provide our best service to Paleco and its customers and help solve the perennial blackouts. Consumers have suffered long enough,” Delta P said in a statement.
Paleco general manager Ric Zambales said that with Delta P’s new project, Palawan would have sufficient generating capacity to meet increased demand in the next five years. The Delta P plant is also expected to add stability, reliability and flexibility to the grid and complement other independent power producers. “We will have sufficient supply of power for the next five years with the addition of 26.6 megawatts,” he said.
In a pre-bid conference held September last year, two companies manifested interest during the pre-bid conference but did not appear during the formal opening and evaluation of comparative proposals. Thus, the BAC decided to award the project to Delta P, the original proponent of the proposed project.
Established in 1997, Delta P is 50-50 owned by GPI and Vivant Energy Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of listed Vivant Corp.