The Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative (INEC) on Tuesday signed a one-year emergency power supply agreement (EPSA) with GNPower Dinginin Ltd. Co. (GNPD) to help secure up to 51 megawatts (MW) power supply for the province.
“This emergency power supply agreement will safeguard the welfare of our power consumers in the province,’ INEC acting general manager Cipriano Martinez said in a briefing after the EPZA signing held at the electric cooperative’s main branch in Dingras, Ilocos Norte.
Martinez said the province is now better prepared in terms of power supply following the strengthened alliance with Aboitiz Power Corporation, which has indirect partnership agreement for the GNPD through its wholly-owned subsidiary Therma Power, Inc. (TPI).
During the same event, GNPD sales manager Ronald Gutierrez said the power supply deal has a baseload capacity of 35 MW at PHP6.75 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), with a discount of PHP0.10 if INEC pays its bill promptly effective this month.
‘So, even if the price of coal in t
he world market will increase, the (baseload capacity) rate is fixed,’ he said, adding that with the agreement, consumers could expect lower power rates in the next billing amidst the seasonal uptick of demand during the Christmas season.
He said GNPD is now working for a long-term power agreement with INEC in compliance with government rules and regulations.
To further lower power rates, which are currently pegged at PHP10.9955/kWh for residential consumers, Martinez hopes that renewable energy firms in the province would be able to directly supply at least 15 percent of the cooperative’s requirements.
‘The governor has been supportive of this mix with renewable energy and the plan is (for the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Ilocos Norte) to pass a resolution requesting independent power producers to sell a portion of that power to Ilocos Norte,’ he added.
Source Philippines News Agency
