SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. is pursuing a P200-billion power project in Pagbilao, Quezon that would be able to generate 2,130 megawatts (MW) of capacity upon completion in 2026.
The P200-billion SMC Pagbilao power project will be undertaken by SMC Global Power’s two subsidiaries. These are Central Luzon Premiere Power Corp. (CLPPC) and Lumiere Energy Technologies Inc. (LETI).
CLPPC will build a 4 x 355MW supercritical pulverized coal power plant in Barangay Ibabang Polo, Pagbilao in two phases, with construction period targeted from August this year to July 2026. The first 710MW is targeted for commercial operation in November 2024.
CLPPC said the project cost is estimated at P140 billion.
LETI, meanwhile, will undertake a P60-billion power project in the same barangay. The 2 x 355MW power facility will also be constructed in two phases, starting July 2021 to November 2025.
The plant will be located adjacent to its sister company, CLPPC.
The power projects of CLPPC and LETI will use a supercritical boiler system and will share facilities. “The supercritical power plants will comply with the HELE [High Efficiency Low Emission] requirements for new coal-fired power plants,” SMC Global said in its project scoping submitted to the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
SMC Pagbilao power project’s scoping is an early stage of the Environmental Impact Assessment Process, which will result in an environmental impact statement.
These two new projects are expected to inject the much-needed capacity into the power-hungry Luzon grid. Based on DOE (Department of Energy) projections the country would need a total of 62,248MW of additional capacity by 2040 based on the Power Demand Supply and Outlook for 2018-2040.
“To support the country’s power needs through the DOE, SMC Global Power will construct supercritical pulverized coal power plants through CLPPC and LETI.
LETI intends to develop a 710MW coal-fired power plant. CLPPC intends to develop a 1,420MW coal-fired power plant,” it said.
These two power projects, through a 13-km 500kV transmission line, will connect to the proposed 500kV NGCP Pagbilao station and provide additional capacity to the Luzon grid.
The CLPPC and the LETI plants, added SMC Global Power, “will contribute to increased reliability and resiliency of the Luzon grid. The proposed power plant will also help to stimulate the local and provincial economy. It will provide employment opportunities to the working-age population of Pagbilao and neighboring localities during the construction period and during the plant’s commercial operation.”
Further, the company explained that a supercritical plant differ from coal power plants because the water running through it works as a supercritical fluid, meaning it is neither a liquid nor gas. A supercritical plant is about 4.8 percent more efficient than a subcritical plant, it added.