NOTE: THIS STORY WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE BOHOL CHRONICLE’S SUNDAY PRINT EDITION.
Bohol Hybrid Energy Corporation (BHEC), declared its determination to build Bohol’s first renewable energy plant – a 50 megawatt (MW) solar power plant located in the province.
BHEC president, Atty. Wilfredo Bacareza, a Boholano who served as chief executive officer (CEO)of a Philippine National Oil Company subsidiary and also a former vice president of Aboitiz Power released a statement to the Chronicle on Wednesday that “BHEC is determined to pursue their renewable energy plant in Bohol due to the pressing and immediate need for energy security and renewable energy in Bohol.
BHEC recently pre-qualified and submitted its technical and financial proposal to the Third Party Bids and Awards Committee (TPBAC) of 1BP on February 12, 2021, together with five other bidders for the construction of an “in-island baseload power plant” to supply the ten-year 83 MWs committed baseload demand for 1BP starting in 2024.
A combination solar and diesel plant type was offered to the Third Party Bids and Awards Committee (TPBAC) of 1BP by BHEC with an effective levelized price of P5.1897.
ThermaVisayas, Inc. (TVI), a subsidiary of Aboitiz Power which submitted the lowest bid proposal per kilowatt-hour (kwh) at P3.0405 for the construction of a combination solar and coal-fired baseload power plant in Bohol withdrew its bid on February 23, 2021.
Declared by the TPBAC as the lowest calculated bid, the TVI proposal was in the middle of a rigorous evaluation when its withdrawal was sent to 1BP, TPBAC, and the JTWG.
Following the TPBAC bidding process and TVI’s withdrawal, the tender of Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc. (SPPPHI), will be evaluated as the second-lowest calculated bid of PhP3.9297/kwh for a solar+diesel plant.
STAND ALONE POWER PLANT
Bacareza expressed his deep concern over the lack of a dedicated power plant in Bohol which he believes “has hampered development and investments in the island.”
Bacareza disclosed that “having its own power infrastructure not only benefits the energy security and reliability of Bohol but the project will be used as a base to export clean renewable energy to the rest of the Philippines.”
According to Bacareza that “for many years Boholanos have suffered from a lack of energy security due to its lack of an in island plant” as shown by the devastating 7.2 magnitude October 15, 2013 earthquake followed by a month-long province-wide black-out on November 8, 2013, caused by super-typhoon Yolanda that laid waste the province of Leyte and a 6.5 magnitude earthquake on July 6, 2017, that crippled our main source of energy in central Leyte.
NO COAL
Bacareza also lauded the decision of the Provincial Government of Bohol not to accept coal plants “because the future of power lies in renewable energy and Bohol has valuable renewable energy resources that remain untapped.”
A no-coal ordinance was passed by the Provincial Government of Bohol on April 6, 2018, under Provincial Ordinance No. 2018-005 banning the establishment of coal-fired power plants in the province.
A tourism stakeholder, Barcareza who owns Ocean Suites Boutique Hotel in Tagbilaran City and Ocean Blue Lounge in Moadto Strip, Barangay Duljo, Panglao cited the benefits of the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP) of the Department of Energy (DOE) as a source of clean and affordable power instead of relying on power suppliers outside Bohol.
The GEOP entitles end-users to choose renewable energy in meeting their energy requirements.
Bacareza is currently the president of a number of power firms such as Global Clean Hybrid Energy Corporation and Island Hybrid Power Corporation. (Chito M. Visarra)