Petron on track to build Bataan power plant

MANILA, Philippines - Petron Corp., the country’s biggest oil company said it is on track in the construction of its cogeneration power plant in Limay, Bataan.

In a report, Petron said Phase 2 (70 megawatts) of the cogeneration power facility is 80 percent complete. It is expected to be completed by 2014.

Phase 1 (70 MW) of the power plant started operating in May this year.

The new cogeneration power plant, which is expected to cost P21 billion, will initially use coal as fuel and is expected to switch to pet coke once the Limay refinery starts pet coke production in 2014.

As planned, the power plant is expected to serve Petron’s electricity and steam requirements. It also is expected to reduce the company’s refining costs.

In the same presentation, Petron said the upgrade of the Refinery Master Plant 2 (RMP-2) is also on track to meet its fourth quarter 2014 target completion.

San Miguel Corp., which owns majority stake of Petron, has allocated some P37.4 billion for RMP-2, which is aimed at upgrading the oil firm’s 180,000-barrel-per-day Bataan refinery.

Based on the plan, RMP-2 would involve further upgrades to the Limay refinery and the addition of new facilities to enhance operating efficiencies and capability to convert low-margin fuel oil into a broader range of white products and petrochemical products.

When completed in 2014, the Limay refinery will be able to produce pet coke, which may be used as fuel for the new cogeneration power plant for the refinery.

The upgrade would also allow Petron to be country’s first producer of Euro IV-standard fuels, the global clean air standard.

Petron also reported that it has completed rebranding 189 of its 555 stations in Malaysia.

As of the first half of the year, the company has expanded the number of its service stations to more than 2,100.