Napocor sales down 2.96%

Due to a decline in electricity bought by the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the National Power Corp.’s (Napocor) energy sales for the Luzon Grid dropped by 5.07 percent. Napocor’s total energy sales for the first nine months of the year likewise dropped by 2.96 percent.

Aside from Napocor, Meralco buys energy from First Gas Power Corp. (FGPC) and the Quezon Power Philippines Ltd. (QPPL) which operate the Sta. Rita 1,000-megawatt (MW) gas-fired combined cycle in Batangas, and the 700-MW coal-fired in Quezon province, respectively. The two are independent power producers (IPPs) which have power supply agreements with Meralco.

The Lopez-controlled utility company supplies more than 70 percent of the power consumed in Luzon while Luzon itself accounts for 75 percent of Napocor’s power sales.

Napocor officials project that Meralco will continue to reduce its dependence on power from the government-run corporation as it shifts to IPPs. In 2003, another IPP (San Lorenzo also in Batangas) will go on stream, feeding 500-MW of energy exclusively to the country’s biggest electricity distribution company.

Meralco bought 15,363.14 Gwh from Napocor in the first nine months of the year compared to the 16,746.24 Gwh last year.

Total energy sold by Napocor reached 26,385.5 (Gwh) or a 2.96- percent drop compared to the 27,191.4 Gwh recorded in the same period last year. While the Luzon grid registered a reduction in sales, the Visayas and Mindanao grids both registered positive growths albeit minimal.

Key to the growth in Mindanao is the one-day power sales (ODPS) scheme, which has been selling excess power for half the price.

The Visayan grid grew due to the 122.49-percent growth in power consumption from the Mactan Export Processing Zone-Acoland in Cebu.– Ted Torres