Meralco set to conclude talks with Osaka Gas

MANILA, Philippines - Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) hopes to conclude talks for a joint venture with Osaka Gas this year, its chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said yesterday.

“We’ll find out before the end of the year if it’s a go,” Pangilinan told reporters.

Pangilinan said in February that Meralco is in talks with Osaka Gas, Japan’s second largest natural gas supplier, for the development of a $2-billion LNG facility in Luzon.

LNG is natural gas that has been converted into liquid for ease of storage or transport.

Pangilinan said the investment for the project would run up to $2 billion for a plant with a capacity of 1,500 megawatts or more.

He said the possible joint venture with Osaka Gas includes a regasification facility or LNG terminal.

The regasification facility will convert the imported LNG to natural gas for delivery to the power plant.

“It would have to be (an integrated project with terminal and power plant). You need a gasification plant because we need to import gas,” Pangilinan said.

For the arrangement, Pangilinan said Meralco wants a 60-percent stake in the project.

The company has lined up three coal projects with a total generating capacity of 2,255 megawatts. These are the 455-MW coal-fired power plant in Mauban, Quezon, a 600-MW coal-fired power plant in Subic and the 1,200-MW coal power plant in Atimonan, Quezon.

Meralco Power Gen (MGen), the power generation arm of Meralco has partnered with several companies for its existing projects.

It has partnered with New Growth BV, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Electricity Generating Public Company Limited (EGCO) of Thailand for the 455MW coal-fired power plant project in Mauban, Quezon and with Aboitiz Power Corp. and Taiwan Cogeneration for the 600 MW power project in Subic.

Meralco posted a consolidated reported net income of P18.1 billion last year or five percent higher than 2013’s figures.