DECISION ON A1E CONVERSION INTO MERCHANT FACILITY SEEN

manila Electric Co. (Meralco) Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said a decision on whether its power-generation arm will convert the shovelready $3-billion Atimonan One Energy (A1E) coal-fired power plant into a merchant facility will be finalized in the next few months.

The Luzon grid has been placed in yellow alert for three consecutive days from March 6 to 8 due to thin insufficient operating reserves brought about by the high demand for electricity as expected during summer months and the forced outage of some power plants.

“This highlights the need for more power,” Pangilinan said, explaining the delay in the approval of PSA applications and the consequent delay in the financial close and subsequently the commercial operations date of the power projects will adversely affect the utility firm’s ability to meet demand growth in its franchise and overall energy security in the Philippines. Lenie Lectura