Salcon pushes need for coal-fired plant

The feared power crisis may or may not hit Cebu in the coming years but Salcon Power Corporation said it will still push through with its proposed $270 million (P15 billion) coal-fired power plant in Naga because Cebu needs it.

"If there would be no power crisis in 2008, we would not operate the new plant. If there would be power crisis, who would answer it?" said Salcon administration manager Raul Estrelloso at a press conference yesterday.

Besides, with or without power crisis, the government would lose nothing because Salcon is an independent power producer free from any government subsidy, Estrelloso said as he explained the importance of the project, which is joint venture with the Korean Electric Philippines Corp.

Estrelloso said Salcon must pursue its expansion program to build a new power plant to generate a capacity of 200 megawatts of power in addition to its present plant capacity of 110 mw.

The Energy Department earlier said that Cebu's dependable capacity of 302 mw falls short of the 404 mw. It said further that the demand in the Visayan region has continued to rise through the years.

Cebu is expected to need 500 mw more by the years 2011 to 2014, the DOE said -a matter that the National Transmission Corporation had earlier agreed saying the region is on "red alert" status due to the lack of additional power generator at this time.

TRANSCO officials stood firm in their projection that the present power supply is only good for two years more and that a power crisis would befall the region in the succeeding years.

Citing these data, Estrelloso said Salcon's expansion plan becomes more necessary because the additional power the new plants will generate could help meet the additional demands.

Estrellosos defended Salcon's project saying that a coal-fired plant is cheaper to consumers and safer, contrary to the claims of the opposition. He assured that the proposed new coal-fired plant would use advance, clean but cheaper technology and raw material.