CBKPOWER.COMSTATE-RUN Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) Corp. said it will initiate a rebidding process for the privatization of the Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) hydroelectric power plant (HEPP) complex.
In an announcement posted on its Facebook page, PSALM said it will hold a new bidding “to optimize the assets to be privatized and provide maximum value to its stakeholders.”
“PSALM hopes to attract significant interest from industry players and invites robust participation from potential bidders,” the company said.
The CBK hydro facilities are under a 25-year build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer and power purchase agreement between independent power producer CBK Power Co. Ltd. and National Power Corp. (NPC), which will expire in 2026. These facilities include the 39.37-megawatt (MW) Caliraya HEPP in Lumban, the 22.91-MW Botocan HEPP in Majayjay, and the 366-MW Kalayaan I and 368.36-MW Kalayaan II pumped-storage power plants in Laguna.
Asked for further details on the rebidding process, PSALM President and Chief Executive Officer Dennis Edward A. Dela Serna said that, given the short term of the independent power producer administrator (IPPA) contract, the company decided to proceed with a direct asset sale.
IPPAs are responsible for administering and managing the output from energy conversion agreements and power purchase agreements that NPC has entered into with independent power producers.
“We will proceed with the rebidding via a competitive bidding process. One month prior to the bid date is the target release date for the minimum bid price,” Mr. Dela Serna said.
The Department of Energy earlier indicated that the auction is scheduled for April, a step back from the previously planned 2024 timeline.
Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla cited the delay as stemming from the pending issuance of the pricing methodology for the third green energy auction (GEA-3) set for next month, which will also include pumped-storage hydro capacities.
The government awaited the pricing scheme for GEA-3 to avoid affecting the value of the CBK hydropower plant complex.
In a pre-proposal conference in July 2024, five energy firms participated, including Marubeni Corp., Semirara Mining and Power Corp., Thunder Consortium, First Gen Prime Energy Corp., and Giga Ace 11, Inc.
Thunder Consortium comprises Aboitiz Renewables, Inc., Electric Power Development Co., and Sumitomo Corp.
The government expects the CBK privatization to generate up to P100 billion.
PSALM was created under Republic Act No. 9136, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, to oversee the privatization of NPC generation assets, liabilities, independent power producer contracts, real estate assets, and other disposable assets. Its corporate life is set to expire in June 2026, 25 years after the effectivity of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act. Should PSALM be dissolved, all of its assets and liabilities will revert to the National Government. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
