Spex to conduct transmission line rehab study

Shell Petroleum Exploration B.V. (Spex), a member of the Royal Dutch Group and operator of the Malampaya Deep Water Gas to Power Project, said yesterday it is willing to conduct a study on how to rehabilitate the Biñan-Dasmariñas transmission lines, but will not provide funds for the rehabilitation.

"It is a study to look at what existing transmission line can be loaded up. We are not in the transmission business. We are just conducting a study with Transco (National Transmission Corp.)," Spex said.

"There is no signing of agreement, it is just a study," Spex managing director Eliseo Santiago said. Transco earlier said it is in discussion with Spex on how to assist the transmission firm in the rehabilitation of the said transmission line.

"We are currently negotiating with the Shell group to help in the rehabilitation of the Biñan-Dasmariñas line to allow a smooth dispatch of power coming from Ilijan power plant," Transco president Alan. T. Ortiz said.

The 1,200 megawatt (MW) Ilijan gas-fired power facility is a project of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and Korea Electric Corp. (Kepco). Ilijan is one of the power plants that gets its natural gas from the Malampaya project.

The improvement of the Biñan-Dasmariñas transmission line, which is part of the Batangas Transmission Reinforcement Project (BTRP), is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2004.

The completion of the BTRP, meanwhile, will run from January 2004 to December 2005 for the setting up of the transmission lines and substations. Santiago, who is also the country director for Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., said the study will explore ways to improve the dynamic capacity of the line rather than built a new transmission line.

"It’s a study to look at to what level the existing transmission line can be loaded up. For example, a certain line will have a certain capacity but during certain conditions we may be able to go beyond that capacity and that is what we are looking at," he said.

The Spex official did not say when the study will be completed and how much it will cost.