GNPower taps Alstom for Diningin’s turbine
The Ayala Corp.’s energy unit and its partners in GNPower corporate vehicle tapped French-firm Alstom as turbine supplier to the 660megawatt Diningin coal-fired power project in Mariveles, Bataan.
AC Energy Holdings Chief Executive Officer Eric T. Francia confirmed the award to the European firm on the supply of the turbine for the coal plant, which is an expansion of its greenfield development portfolio.
This is also a critical complement to the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract that had been awarded to Chinese firm Shanghai Electric Power Corporation.
“Preliminary works already ongoing,” he said when asked if noticeto-proceed had already been served to their EPC contractor.
The Diningin project, which commands investment of roughly $1 billion, is effectively an expansion of the company’s developments in Bataan. The initial venture was also a 600MW coal-fired power installation in a proximate site.
The Ayala group first bought into the GNPower Mariveles project an initial 17-percent stake. The Diningin project will have same set of equity holders, including American investment firm Sithe Global Power LLC of The Blackstone Group.
Francia previously apprised media that they tapped about five banks for the 70-percent loan financing component. The remaining 30-percent of financing will come from the contribution of equity partners.
They waited for regulatory approvals prior to the selection and final award of the EPC deal to the Chinese contractor.
The generated capacity of the Diningin plant is targeted on stream around 2019 – in time for the commitments the project sponsors have with off-takers or the purchasers of the facility’s electricity output.
GNPower is simultaneously advancing the construction of its 540MW Kauswagan coal-fired power project in Lanao del Norte. It has the same Chinese EPC contractor, but turbine provider in that project is German firm Siemens AG.
For the Ayala group, the shortterm target is to beef up its attributable capacity to 1,000 megawatts by year 2019 upon the completion of ongoing projects.