The National Power Corporation (NPC) is set to open bids next week for the supply and delivery of renewable energy (RE) to hybridize its existing diesel power plants in four provinces, with a total approved budget of P3.42 billion.
The bidding, scheduled for March 20, aims to secure a renewable energy power producer (REPP) to finance, design, construct, operate, and maintain renewable energy facilities that will supplement or replace power generation at NPC’s diesel-fired plants for the next 20 years. The hybridization program is part of NPC’s ongoing effort to reduce its diesel consumption, with a goal to achieve 100 percent RE for its Small Power Utilities Group (SPUG) plants by 2028 to 2030.
The largest allocation of P960 million is designated for the REPP in Palawan, with offers required to stay within a subsidized approved generation rate (SAGR) of P7.39 per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Batanes follows with an allocation of P900 million, also capped at a SAGR of P7.39 per kWh. The Bicol region is allocated P820 million, with a SAGR ceiling of P6.5520 per kWh, and Tawi-Tawi has a budget of P740 million, with an SAGR limit of P6.7072 per kWh.
NPC will serve as the offtaker for the energy produced, paying for the power delivered to its switchyard, including losses, from the winning REPP.
Fernando Martin Roxas, NPC president and CEO, previously said the hybridization program will replace approximately a quarter of current diesel consumption with renewable power. NPC currently oversees 274 SPUG power plants in off-grid areas which are powered by diesel generators. These plants serve 238 areas across 34 provinces, including islands and communities not connected to the main transmission grid.
NPC is also responsible for managing transmission systems in island provinces like Palawan, Catanduanes, Masbate, Marinduque, and Mindoro, and is tasked with overseeing watersheds and locating indigenous power sources.
