THE Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) on Wednesday announced that it has qualified eight firms to proceed in the bidding for the sale of the 165-megawatt Casecnan Hydroelectric Power Plant (CHEPP).
These entities include Fresh River Lakes Corporation, Neptune Hydro Inc., Global Hydro Power Corporation, Panasia Energy Inc., GigaAce 11 Inc., Belgrove Power Corporation, a consortium comprising EEI Power Corporation, Soosan ENS. Co. Ltd., Soosan Industries Co. Ltd., Mapalad Power Corporation and Semirara Mining and Power Corporation (SMPC).
“PSALM thoroughly scrutinized the eligibility documents of these eight vying entities,” said PSALM TPresident Dennis Edward Dela Serna. “This process laid the groundwork for a successful and judicious sale of the Casecnan plant. We also made sure that the winning bidder will have a good return on investment from the power plant.”
The bidding for the Casecnan Plant is scheduled on May 16.
The CHEPP was turned over to the government in 2021 after the 20-year build-operate-transfer scheme between the CE Casecnan Water and Energy Co. Inc. and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) lapsed on December 11, 2021. It was then placed under the co-ownership of PSALM and NIA, which represents the government’s interest at 60 percent and 40 percent, respectively.
The state firm is confident that the sale of the Casecnan plant will be successful, efficient and judicious for PSALM and the winning bidder who will take over its management.
The CHEPP is a “run-of-river” type of plant with limited impounding area. The water from the reservoir flows into the plant’s powerhouse, down to the Pantabangan lake and into the irrigation channels of the NIA, which will continue its mandate of irrigating farmlands even after the privatization of the CHEPP.
It is located at Sitio Pauan, Brgy. Villarica, Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija, about 150 km north of Manila.