Energy Development Corp. (EDC) won the tender to supply baseload power to Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco), one of the biggest electric cooperatives in the Visayas region.
EDC, a subsidiary of First Gen Corp., will supply 20 megawatts (MW) to Ceneco for 10 years. It will commence in the last quarter of the year, once all requirements have been finalized and secured.
EDC has been supplying clean and renewable power to Ceneco since 2011, with a contracted demand of 20 MW. With this new contract, an additional 20 MW will be delivered making the total contracted demand at 40 MW.
Ceneco, EDC and First Gen officials recently held a ceremonial contract signing that marked the conclusion of the Competitive Selection Process for the power supply procurement.
The event was attended by Ceneco’s Board President Jojit Yap, Acting General Manager Arnel Lapore, and board members and First Gen representatives led by Vice President for Power Marketing, Economics, and Trading Carlos Lorenzo Vega and EDC’s Assistant Vice President and Head of Enterprise Commercial Gabriel Vergara.
The power supply contract is compliant with Renewable Portfolio Standards and aligned with the provincial government’s thrust to pursue and develop a diversified green economy and to transition to Reliable, Renewable, Available, Accessible, Affordable and Sustainable Energy in Occidental Negros by 2030.
Ceneco said it prioritizes contracting for sustainable and reliable energy, Lapore said. “In 2030, we are hopeful that we’ll be able to acquire more renewable supply,” he said, adding that its partnership with First Gen will provide affordable, clean and reliable energy to its consumers.
EDC has over 1,480MW total installed capacity and accounts for 20 percent of the country’s total installed RE capacity. Its 1,185.40-MW geothermal portfolio accounts for 62 percent of the country’s total installed geothermal capacity, making the Philippines the third largest geothermal producer in the world.
Last month First Gen posted a recurring net income of P9 billion in the first semester, up by 30 percent from last year’s P7 billion, due to the strong performance of EDC.
“It was EDC that mainly delivered higher earnings as a result of better operating income from higher electricity prices,” First Gen said.
Revenues stood at P71 billion at end-June this year, up from P66 billion from last year’s level. The company attributed this from elevated natural gas and Wholesale Electricity Spot Market prices.
The natural gas portfolio accounted for 63 percent of First Gen’s total consolidated revenues, while 34 percent came from EDC’s geothermal, wind, and solar plants. The company’s hydro plants accounted for the remaining 2 percent.
