The bidding for a 20-megawatt power supply for the mainland grid has suffered a delay, after the Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO) decided to suspend the recommended bidder of its third party bids and awards committee.
Jeffrey Tan-Endriga, the chair of PALECO, told Palawan News that they decided to call the bidding for the deal to supply power to the mainland a failure after the chosen bidder failed to get confirmation from the cooperative’s board of directors (BOD).
“May recommendation ‘yong TPBAC na ‘yong isang power provider ang ma-award, only to find out na may mga hindi sila dinisclose. With this concern, any doubtful presentation ng isang bidder ay subject na ito sa failure of bidding. Para wala maging problema si PALECO, minabuti natin na i-failure,” Endriga said.
Endriga didn’t say which power company was involved, but he did say that Palawan customers are still on track to get ready for the departure of one of their current suppliers, PPGI Inc., whose contract will end in 2024.
Endriga said they are starting to accept bidders for two separate power supply deals—the 20 MW for the mainland grid and a 10 MW project for El Nido in the north. He said that the Department of Energy (DOE) had already provided the terms of reference and notice to proceed for the two Competitive Selection Processes (CSP) or bidding.
Endriga added that the bidding proper for El Nido is expected to take place in August. He also stressed that PALECO would ensure strict screening for selecting bidders.
“Continuous ang pag-accept ng mga interesadong suppliers but we need to be very strict on choosing bidders,” he said.
The power demand on the main grid had hit 58.8 MW in May, just a little below the contracted capacity of 60.2 MW of all of PALECO’s current suppliers.
Endriga assured us that there is still time for PALECO to support the power demand before PPGI Inc. ends its contract in 2024.
Endriga added that PALECO is also seeking authorization from the Department of Energy to make an emergency purchase of 6MW as a safety measure while the formal CSPs are being completed.
“Sa ngayon meron pa tayong tolerable allowance, pero by next year, syempre tumataas nang tumataas ang demand natin, meron tayong tinatawag na emergency purchase na ginagawa ngayon. Ang capacity na required natin is six megawatt, ongoing yan. Para sa ginagawa natin na kakulangan ng demand while in the process of conducting the second round of CSP for the main grid,” he said.
