Aboitiz Power unit extends running hours of power barges

MANILA, Philippines - Therma Marine, a subsidiary of Aboitiz Power has extended the running hours of its power barges in Mindanao to close to 24 hours on a daily due to the ongoing power crisis in the island.

In an advisory yesterday, Therma Marine said 22 electric cooperatives and distribution utilities requested for the longer operation of the power barges to fill in the supply gap, created by a combination of power plant repairs and precarious water levels in Lake Lanao because of the summer heat.

These entities have existing supply contracts with Therma Marine.

Therma Marine president and chief executive officer Jovy Batiquin assured that the company has enough fuel supply to meet customers’ needs.

“We are ensuring our customers we have enough fuel supply to meet the power supply requirements of our customers especially this summer. We want to be able to respond to our customers when they are in need of additional power supply,” Batiquin said.

Furthermore, Therma Marine has moved an earlier plan to conduct maintenance works on the power barges to a later date or only after the Steag State power plant goes back online.

Thus, Batiquin assured power consumers that the preventive maintenance works will not be scheduled until the Steag Power plant comes online in May.

The 210-megawatt (MW) Steag coal plant is still undergoing repairs after it went offline on Feb. 27, triggering an island-wide power outage in Mindanao.

According to the company, the maintenance schedule of its power plants is based on its operating hours and is a critical activity to prevent the power plant from more damaging unscheduled interruptions.

Therma Marine currently operates two floating power barges in Maco, Compostela Valley and in Nasipit, Agusan del Norte, with a combined capacity of 200 MW.

Traditionally utilized as a peaking power plant, the power barges have been operating lately as more of a baseload plant because of Mindanao’s shortage in power.

Almost 90 percent of Therma Marine’s power rates to its customers are for fuel costs, which is a passthrough rate. The remaining 10 percent covers the capital recovery, maintenance, salaries, spare parts costs, among others, the company said.