TransCo plans transmission line Hanjin shipyarda facility in Subic
Monday, May 01, 2006
By MYRNA M. VELASCO
A two-phased transmission line program is being primed by the National Transmission Corporation (TransCo), chiefly to cater to the requirement of reliable power supply of South Korean firm Hanjin Shipping Company Ltd., which will be putting in huge investment of up to .0 billion in Subic.
In addressing this concern, an initial discussion was held among electricity providers in the area, including Subic Enerzone Corporation (SEZ), and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to map out investment plan to meet the initial 10 to 20 megawatt power needs of the shipbuilding firm.
TransCo president and chief executive officer Alan T. Ortiz revealed that for their part, the transmission line investment program would kick off with the installation of a two seven-kilometer 69 kilovolt (kV) submarine cable. Total project costs are still being penciled in.
He said that this will initially provide for the initial requirement of Hanjin’s power supply. The shipbuilding project in the Subic freeport is expected to start its operations next year.
The second phase, on the other hand, entails the laying of a longer 230-kV line that would connect to the Olongapo substation. "This is in anticipation of the peak demand," Ortiz explained.
He has further emphasized that from the initial demand of 20 MW, the capacity addition would reach up to 75 MW in five years; given also that the South Korean firm’s shipbuilding venture is set in phases.
"We have met with SBMA and Subic Enerzone. We would support the investment efforts of Hanjin Corporation…what they would need is reliable power," Ortiz stressed.
The Korean company initially cornered 249 hectares as the site of its mammoth shipbuilding venture in the country; and for the next phase, it would add up an area of 100 hectares.
Owing to the fact that Subic Bay primarily caters to industrial locators, the power providers in the area have devised a program that would somehow bring down the cost of electricity delivered to their customers.
With a renegotiated power supply contract, SEZ started offering since October last year electricity rates to business locators in the freeport by a rate that is P1.20 per kilowatt hour (kWh) cheaper than what is being normally offered to other customers in the Luzon grid.
It was noted that part of that competitive power rate was the P0.40 per kWh in its distribution charge; and the inclusion of suppliers National Power Corporation and Mirant Corporation which reduced their buying price of electricity by about P0.66 per kWh.
SEZ is a consortium composed of Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Davao Light & Power Company (DLPC), Mirant Philippines and San Fernando Electric Light & Power Company.
It was propped that the power cost reduction would be another layer of cost softening that they would be able to pass on to their customers.
posted by philpower @ 9:59 AM,
