Five more IPPs get certificates of compliance

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has issued another batch of certificates of compliance (COC) to five more independent power producers (IPPs).

ERC chairman Manuel Sanchez said this will bring the total number of IPPs that can start their commercial operations to sixteen.

Sanchez said the issuance of COC "ensures that companies that will be involved in this sector meet not only the electric power generation standards but also the health, safety, and environmental standards set by the government."

The five new IPPs are Trans-Asia Power Generation Corp. (TA Power), which operates and maintains a 52-megawatt bunker C-fired power plant in Norzagaray, Bulacan; Ibiden Philippines Inc. (IPI), an electronics company with a self generating facility of 12.63 MW at the First Philippine Industrial Park in Sto. Tomas, Batangas; NEC Toppan Circuit Solutions Phil. Inc. (NEC-Toppan), another electronics company with a 10.72 MW power facility at Light Industry and Science Park II, Calamba, Laguna; Philips Semiconductors Phils. Inc. (PSC), an export enterprise with a facility of 5.46 MW, located at the Light Industry and Science Park and Mindanao Energy Systems Inc. (MINERGY) with 18.9 MW diesel power plant installed in Barangay Tablon, Cagayan De Oro City.

Under Republic Act 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, generation companies are required to secure the said compliance certificates from the ERC.

The COC is issued upon compliance with the Philippine Grid and Distribution Code (PGDC), the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) rules, the Cross Ownership and Market Share Limitations and the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), among other requirements.