NOTE: THIS STORY WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE BOHOL CHRONICLE’S SUNDAY PRINT EDITION.
The One Bohol Power (1BP) Distribution Utilities thru its Third Party Bids and Awards Committee (TPBAC) successfully completed the opening of the technical and financial proposals of six bidders with tenders within the price cap set by the TPBAC Technical Working Group (TWG) at PhP5.4089/kwh).
The bidding finally got off the ground last Friday after it was postponed on orders from the Department of Energy (DOE) at the Modala Beach Resort Tumoy Village, Purok 5, Barangay Doljo, Panglao.
LOWEST CALCULATED BID
Ranked according to their price offers, ThermaVisayas, Inc. (TVI), a subsidiary of AboitizPower submitted an effective levelized price of PhP3.0405/kwh for coal+solar plant, Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc., owned by Leandro Leviste, son of former Senator Loren Legarda, now Representative of Antique – PhP3.9297/kwh for a diesel+solar plant, Global Business Power Corporation of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) for diesel+solar – Php4.5362/kwh.
The three other power bidders were SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. of San Miguel Corporation for natural gas+battery – PhP4.5596/kwh, Bohol Hybrid Energy Corp. whose chair and President is a Boholano – Atty. Wilfredo Bacareza, Jr. for diesel+solar. – PhP 5.1897 and Energy Development Corp. (EDC) of the Lopez Group for diesel+geothermal – PhP5.2168/kwh.
TVI was declared by the TPBAC as the bidder with the lowest calculated bid for submitting the lowest effective levelized price simply defined as a calculation of the present value of the total cost of building and operating a power plant over an assumed lifetime, according to industry sources.
STRINGENT POST QUALIFICATION
According to the TPBAC, TVI’s financial and technical proposals will still undergo a rigorous post qualification and detailed evaluation as the lowest bid before the declaration of the winning bidder and the issuance of a notice of award.
The other ranked bidders based on their proposed bids shall be considered if TVI fails to satisfy the conditions of the bidding requirements.
The Joint Competitive Selection Process (JCSP) generated interest from 19 power firms but only six participated comprising major power companies in the country.
According to the TPBAC, TVI’s financial and technical proposals will undergo a rigorous post qualification and detailed evaluation as the lowest bid before the declaration of the winning bidder and the issuance of a notice of award.
The other ranked bidders based on their proposed bids shall be considered if TVI fails to satisfy the conditions of the bidding requirements.
PLANT COMBINATIONS
The five bidders offered a combination of diesel, coal, geothermal, and solar plant types with SMC proposing to construct a natural gas-fired baseload power plant embedded in the island.
The other bidders will choose the plant types among their sources to run the kind of baseload plant in Bohol except for coal which is prohibited by the Provincial Government of Bohol under the Provincial Ordinance No. 2018-005.
The winning bidder shall supply the committed baseload demand of the three distribution utilities starting at 50 megawatts (MWs) in 2024 to reach 83 MWs in 2033.
The TPBAC emphasized that a baseload plant shall be installed in Bohol with a minimum capacity of not less than the yearly contracted capacity of 1BP and shall be operational by December 26, 2023.
The TPBAC is headed by its chairman Engr.TitoAndamon, members – Atty. Elmer Pozon, Cecilia Dyan Pana, Engr. Samuel Romero, and Engr. Rey Grapa.
The objectives of the JCSP is for the least cost (affordable and competitive rates), power supply availability even during isolation from the grid or islanding, and full environmental compliance of all existing laws.
1BP is composed of the three distribution utilities in Bohol – Bohol Electric Cooperatives (Boheco) 1 and 2 and Bohol Light Company Inc.
ISLAND BASED PLANT
The urgent need for an island-based baseload plant in Bohol was borne out of the disastrous aftermath of the October 15, 2013 magnitude 7.2 earthquake that devastated the province, super typhoon Yolanda that followed the earthquake on November 8, 2013, and another 6.5 magnitude earthquake on July 6, 2017, both laying to waste the island of Leyte, our main source of power, causing massive power interruptions.
Then-Governor, now 1st District Congressman Edgar Chatto issued Executive Order No. 13 series of 2014 creating the Bohol Energy Development Advisory Group (BEDAG) composed of stakeholders from the power sector and sought the assistance of the USAID Advancing Philippine Competitiveness (COMPETE) for technical assistance in formulating a long term Bohol Island Power Development Plan. (Chito M. Visarra)