THE National Power Corp.’s (Napocor) Board of Directors recently approved the award of the contract for the supply and installation of the Codon-Virac 69-kilovolt (kV) transmission-line project in the island-province of Catanduanes.
Through a competitive public bidding, where four bidders submitted their requirements, the 32-kilometer transmission system was awarded to Saint Lucy Development Construction Corp. at the total contract price of P251,902,939.50. This contract price is P66,864,060.50, or 20.97 percent lower than the Approved Budget for the Contract of P318,767,000, thus making big savings for the government corporation.
Napocor President Maria Gladys Cruz-Santa Rita said that the project is one of the priorities in the 2012-2016 Missionary Electrification Development Plan of the Department of Energy and that, it is crucial in supporting the generation capacities of the new power providers in Catanduanes.
“We expect that with the completion of this transmission system by early fourth quarter of 2015, there will be an improved power stability and reliability in the Catanduanes grid,” Santa Rita said.
Apart from the Codon-Virac transmission line, Napocor is also in the process of bidding out the Virac (Marinawa) 10 MVA, 69-kV substation project in the province, which is estimated at P124.2 million.
The state-run corporation, which provides missionary electrification to off-grid islands, likewise, manages the transmission system for other large islands, like Palawan, Marinduque, Masbate, Oriental Mindoro and Occidental Mindoro.
PNA