AboitizPower retires Cebu diesel plant

MANILA, Philippines — Aboitiz Power Corp. has shut down a 12.4-megawatt (MW) generating unit of its diesel power plant in Cebu after determining that continued operation is no longer viable.

AboitizPower, through East Asia Utilities Corp. (EAUC), completed the decommissioning process and deregistration of the asset from the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines system.

As a result, the generator unit, fueled by bunker C oil or low-quality fuel mainly used in marine vessels, can no longer participate in electricity trading or dispatch power in the spot market.

Following a technical incident in May 2024, EAUC sought regulatory approval to decommission the facility, as it was deemed no longer feasible to repair or operate.

The decommissioning activity, however, does not affect EAUC’s other three generating units.

A wholly owned subsidiary of AboitizPower, EAUC operates a 50-MW bunker oil-fired power plant within the Mactan Export Processing Zone 1 in Lapu-Lapu City.

EAUC, alongside another Aboitiz unit, Cebu Private Power Corp., started delivering power to the grid in December 2010 through the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market.

Earlier this year, AboitizPower temporarily suspended the operations of its two bunker C-fired power barges in Navotas due to commercial and technical issues.

The company’s two facilities in Cebu were also decommissioned in March due to operational issues resulting from the advanced age of their diesel engines.

AboitizPower emerged as the country’s leading generation company in terms of capacity as of July, according to the Energy Regulatory Commission.