Napocor may regroup gencos

The National Power Corp. (Napocor) may regroup the seven generation companies (gencos) which will be privatized once the congressional bill reforming the power industry is passed into law.

The passage of the Power Industry Restructuring Act, which is a condition to the release of multilateral loans, will be taken up again by the incoming Congress which will be formed after the May 14 elections.

"The groupings should be subject to change (to make them more attractive). We should have the flexibility to determine the groupings depending on the reaction of the market," Napocor president Jesus Alcordo said yesterday.

A study jointly made last year by Credit Suisse First Boston and Arthur Andersen Consulting showed Napocor could generate about $5.5 billion from the sale of gencos if the privatization is done correctly.

Alcordo has ordered Napocor to draw up new guidelines for the possible regrouping of gencos.

Two years ago, Napocor came up with a tentative grouping of the gencos which would be bidded out to the private sector. These are:

• Genco I: the Calaca coal-fired plant in Batangas; the Bataan thermal plant in Limay; the Bataan gas turbine; the Malaya gas turbine; and the Magat hydroelectric power plant;

• Genco II: the Sucat and Tegen/Manila thermal power plants; the Sucat gas turbine; the Angat, Barit and Pantabangan hydroelectric plants; and the Masinloc coal-fired plant;

• Genco III: the Bac-Man geothermal plant; the Pulangui and Loboc hydroelectric plants; the Cebu II coal-fired plant; and the Amlan, Gen. Santos, Bohol and Panay diesel power plants;

• Genco IV: the Palimpinon geothermal plant in Negros Oriental; and the Tongonan geothermal plant in Leyte;

• Genco V: the Agus hydroelectric power complex in Mindanao;

• Genco VI: the Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan hydroelectric power complex in Laguna; and

• Genco VII: the Tiwi-Makban geothermal facilities in Southern Luzon.