Napocor sees multiple fund sources for Agus-Pulangi rehabilitation

THE National Power Corp. (Napocor) expects funding for the rehabilitation of the Agus-Pulangi hydroelectric power complex in Mindanao to come from multilateral lending agencies as well as China, its top official said.
Pio J. Benavides, Napocor president and chief executive officer, told reporters that funding for the feasibility study on the hydro facility’s revival will be financed by the World Bank through a grant.
He identified the other lending agencies as Asian Development Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency. He did not identify the Chinese entity that will partly finance the implementation of the project.
Mr. Benavides said he did not know the total amount required to fund the feasibility study as well as the facility’s rehabilitation.
Pressed for a range, he said around P37 billion to P50 billion is required.
“We are the counterpart of World Bank,” although he qualified that Napocor’s contribution would be its manpower.
“World Bank will tap a consultant to study the feasibility of the project,” he added.
Mr. Benavides said three options are being considered for the feasibility study. The first is the rated capacity of the complex and its safety. The second is to increase the capacity plus the safety and security of the plant.
“[The] third [option] is [options] one and two, plus improving the water efficiency,” he said, adding that the activity could span a year.
Bidding for the rehabilitation project will follow, he said.
Asked whether the complex’s privatization will follow, he said he was referring purely to operations.
The Agus hydro power asset has an installed capacity of at least 700 MW. The biggest plant in the complex is the 200-MW Agus VI in Iligan City, Lanao del Norte, which has five operating units, two of which have a capacity of 25 MW each and the rest with 50 MW each.
The Pulangi hydroelectric power plant in Maramag, Bukidnon has three units, each with an installed capacity of 85 MW. The power generation facilities are considered Mindanao’s main sources of low-cost power.
The privatization of Agus-Pulangi is required under Republic Act No. 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA), the law that restructured the power industry.
Under EPIRA, the sale of Agus-Pulangi should come no earlier than 10 years from the effectivity of the law in 2001. It prohibits schemes such as build-operate-transfer, build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer and other variations. —Victor V. Saulon