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COMPLEMENTING its pool of hydroelectric power plants,
the consortium of Norway-based SN Power Invest and
Aboitiz Power Corp. (APC), or Snap Hydro Inc. (Snap
Hydro), submitted the highest bid for the 175-megawatt
(MW) Ambuklao-Binga hydroelectric plants in a bidding
conducted by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities
Management Corp. (PSALM) on Wednesday.
Snap
Hydro offered the highest bid at $325 million for the
Benguet-based hydropower facilities. It was followed by
Calaca Power Partners Co. Ltd. at $305-million, which
were above the reserve price set by the government.
PSALM,
however, did not disclose how much it has set as reserve
price for the power plants.
First
Gen Hydro Power Corp., though prequalified to bid for
the Ambuklao-Binga, opted to defer its participation in
the final bid.
“We are
still going to do more tests and finalize the game plan
with respect to the possible expansion of the
Ambuklao-Binga,” Erramon Aboitiz, APC president and
chief executive, told reporters in an interview after
the bidding.
The APC
official said they plan to finance the acquisition
through project financing using 30-percent equity and 70
percent from the debt market, however, adding that they
will maximize the 60-percent deferred payment scheme
offered by PSALM.
Aboitiz
said the company will also participate in the bidding of
the 246-MW Angat hydroelectric power plant, reiterating
APC’s focus on acquiring assets of the National Power
Corp. (Napocor).
PSALM
said it will declare Snap Hydro the winning bidder as
soon as it has verified the accuracy, authenticity and
completeness of all bid documents that the consortium
had submitted.
PSALM
said it will issue the notice of award to the consortium
to signify that it is the winning bidder for the
Ambuklao-Binga plants.
PSALM
also opened the bidding exercise for the Ambuklao-Binga
power facilities to the media and also invited observers
from the House of Representatives, private entities and
nongovernment organizations to allay fears and
speculations of foul play in the government’s
privatization program.
“We are
7-percent away from the target of 50 percent of the
70-percent Napocor’s generating assets by year-end, or
1,850.4 megawatts,” Jose Ibazeta, PSALM president, said.
He added
that PSALM has bidded out 43 percent of the total
operating capacities in Luzon and the Visayas, including
the 175-MW Ambuklao-Binga hydroelectric power plant.
The
Psalm official said the government has already generated
$2.709 billion from the privatization.
“Today’s
bidding is a manifestation of the level of interest of
foreigners in the privatization,” Ibazeta said.
He also
welcomed any move by Congress to scrutinize steps taken
in the light of allegations that the prequalification
process in the bidding for the 25-year concession of the
National Transmission Corp. (Transco).
“We wish
to assure our legislators, investors and the public that
the privatization process is aboveboard. We are ready to
give our full cooperation in the inquiry. We only hope
that this would not result in the further delay of the
privatization program,” Ibazeta said.
PSALM is
set to bid out the Transco concession on December 12. |
