Meralco seeks DOE nod on Atimonan coal plant

MANILA, Philippines — Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is securing a certification from the government on its proposed coal-fired power plant amid an existing moratorium policy.

Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen), the power generation arm of Meralco, is planning to construct a 1,200-megawatt facility in Atimonan, Quezon.

The Department of Energy (DOE), however, implemented a coal ban late in 2020, barring the processing of applications for greenfield coal facilities.

“So we’re trying to get a DOE certification that is really outside the moratorium to start the discussions on SIS (system impact study) looking for an engineering study,” MGen president and CEO Emmanuel Rubio said.

Earlier, the DOE clarified that the moratorium is not a “total ban,” as this does not cover existing and operational coal power plants or those that are already committed.

Among those not included in the ban are the indicative projects with substantial accomplishments and approved clearances from local government units and the regional development council where they are located.

According to Rubio, the proposed power plant project has already been included in the “committed list.”

“We believe that the project is part of the active project list as a coal plant. So we just want to make that since there have been revisions in the past,” he noted.

The executive also mentioned that MGen previously secured an environmental compliance certificate for the ultra-supercritical coal plant.

MGen earlier bared plans to convert the Atimonan coal project into a gas-fired power plant after drawing flak from various environmental groups.

Meralco chairman and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan said last week that it is still uncertain “whether we stay with coal or we switch it to natural gas.”

“The inclination is to stay with coal because if it’s gas, we have to put up the terminal – the regasification facility,” Pangilinan said.