Atimonan power station

From Global Energy Monitor

Atimonan power station is a power station in Barangay Villa Ibaba, Altimonan, Quezon, Calabarzon, Philippines with multiple units of varying statuses none of which are currently operating.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name Location Coordinates (WGS 84)
Atimonan power station Barangay Villa Ibaba, Altimonan, Quezon, Calabarzon, Philippines 14.0569, 121.86168 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

Loading map...


Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

  • Unit 1, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 4: 14.0569, 121.86168

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name Status Fuel(s) Capacity (MW) Technology CHP Start year Retired year
Unit 1 cancelled coal - unknown 668 ultra-supercritical
Unit 1 pre-construction[1][2][3][4][5] liquefied natural gas[1][2] 640[2][3] combined cycle[1][2] not found 2026[1]
Unit 2 cancelled coal - unknown 668 ultra-supercritical
Unit 2 pre-construction[1][2][3][4][5] liquefied natural gas[1][2] 640[2][3] combined cycle[1][2] not found 2026[1]
Unit 3 announced[1][4] liquefied natural gas[1][2] 640[1][4] combined cycle[1] not found not found
Unit 4 announced[1][4] liquefied natural gas[1][2] 640[1][4] combined cycle[1] not found not found

CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name Owner Parent
Unit 1 Atimonan One Energy Inc (A1E) [100.0%]
Unit 1 Atimonan One Energy, Inc.[1][2] Manila Electric Co
Unit 2 Atimonan One Energy Inc (A1E) [100.0%]
Unit 2 Atimonan One Energy, Inc.[1][2] Manila Electric Co
Unit 3 Atimonan One Energy, Inc.[1][2] Manila Electric Co
Unit 4 Atimonan One Energy, Inc.[1][2] Manila Electric Co

Project-level coal details

  • Coal source(s): Indonesia and/or Australia

Background on Project

June 2015: Church and community leaders speak at anti-coal rally in Atimonan

The Atimonan power station was originally proposed as a power plant fueled by liquified natural gas, but the project proponent, Meralco PowerGen, later changed the fuel to coal. In February 2015 the project was approved by the Quezon provincial legislative council, or Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP). According to a report in BusinessMirror, 11 SP members, including presiding officer Vice Gov. Sam Nantes, were hosted in Taiwan on January 28 and 29 by a Taiwanese construction company on an all-expenses paid trip to view similar power plants. Final approval of the project rests with the national government.[6] The project received an environmental compliance certificate from the Environment Department on Oct. 13, 2015. Completion was planned for 2018.[7]

In November 2015, it was reported that Meralco was still searching for partners for the project, which was estimated at US$2 billion (P94.41 billion), "with the partner likely Japanese or Korean and probably not Chinese," according to company chairman Manuel Pangilinan.[8] In February 2016, Pangilinan expressed uncertainty about what sort of energy mix was favored by the Philippine government: "Should we turn to coal plants... should we turn to gas plants? What are the limits?” He said the Atimonan plant would be a "big question mark" because of its large size."[9]

The certificate of land use conversion for the project was received in March 2016. Construction of the resettlement site is ongoing. In September 2016 Meralco said it was hoping to find a partner for its Atimonan project by first quarter 2017. The estimated cost has risen to US$3 billion.[10]

As of early 2017, Meralco was looking for a foreign partner for the project — "Japanese, Korean. Probably not Chinese." The firm took proposals from potential partners in April. The debt portion of the project (i.e., the capital needing to be raised) was $2 billion; the equity portion was $700 million, for a total of $2.7 billion. Permits were in hand, and resettlement of 50 of the 70 families living on the site had been finished. The supply contract was also still pending. Meralco executives stated that they hoped to bring on an EPC contractor in the second quarter of 2017, start construction in mid-2017, and finish the project by the end of 2021.[11][12] In December 2017 Meralco signed an agreement with ESB International (ESBI), a subsidiary of the Electricity Supply Board of Ireland, under which ESBI would operate and manage the plant for its first ten years, after which it would be operated by Meralco.[13] In February 2018 it was reported that the Energy Regulatory Commission was still considering the proposed Power Supply Agreement for Antimonan and could not give a date for approving or rejecting it.[14]

In October 2018 Meralco announced that it would proceed with construction of Altimonan as a merchant plant that would sell power wholesale instead of through a Power Supply Agreement (PSA).[15] In April 2019 Meralco asked the government to expedite its review of power sharing agreements (PSA's) for seven of its plants, including Atimonan, due to power shortages in Luzon.[16] In April 2019 it was reported that construction had not begun because the plant did not have approval for its power supply agreement from the Energy Regulatory Commission.[17]

In May 2019 the Supreme Court of the Philippines invalidated the plant's Power Supply Agreements (PSA's) because they had not gone through a competitive selection process (CSP), delaying development of the plant. In all seven plants owned by Meralco or contracting with Meralco had their PSA's invalidated by the ruling.[18] In October 2019 State Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate of the Bayan Muna party and Bayan Muna Party Chair Neri Colmenares filed a court petition to require Meralco to tap an independent bidding supervisor, not itself, for power supply agreements or PSAs.[19][20]

The Philippine Department of Energy (DOE) gave the project's completion date as 2024 in its August 2019 list of initiated power projects in Luzon.[21] In May 2020 the project's cost was estimated at P160 billion, up from P94.41 billion in 2015.[22]

In April 2021, Meralco announced that it was abandoning plans to construct the 660 MW coal-fired Subic power station, specifically citing an intention to move away from coal.[23] After the Subic closure was announced, environmental activists said they expected Meralco to cancel plans for the Atimonan plant as well, citing the decision of a major bank to pull funding from both the Subic and Atimonan projects.[24]

The December 2020 Philippines Department of Energy report of committed power stations listed a target operation date of 2024 for Unit 1, but now lists the target date for Unit 2 as "TBD". The report states that delays are due to the plant's ongoing failure to secure a power service agreement with the government after the 2019 Supreme Court ruling (see below).[25] The March 2021 Philippines Department of Energy report pushed back the target completion date of Unit 1 to 2025; Unit 2 remains "TBD".[26]

As of June 2022 there had been no progress on the plant in more than two years, and the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice reported that it is stalled.[27] The project appears to be shelved. In August 2022 documents, target testing, commissioning and operating dates were removed.[28] The DOE's list of projects for December 2022 again listed the plant with a note that it was being considered for a switch to gas.[29]

As of April 2023, the Philippine DoE still listed the plant as a committed power project, along with the note that in February 2023, Meralco (the parent company) had presented the DoE with a "plan to change the technology from coal to natural-gas fired combined cycle gas turbine, and [a request for] the DOE's Clearance to Undertake System Impact Study with NGCP." [30]

Following news of the plant's change in power source, a news article reported that while the proposed coal-fired plant did "not push through amid lack of a power supply agreement and opposition from environmental groups," Atimonan One Energy Inc now plans to amend "the environmental compliance certificate for the transmission line issued for the previously proposed coal plant on May 27, 2016" [31]

Supreme Court ruling delays construction

In May 2019 the Supreme Court of the Philippines ruled that all power supply deals entered into after June 30, 2015 must undergo a Competitive Selection Process (CSP). The case stemmed from a petition filed by the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas Inc. against the ERC, the DOE, and several power distribution utilities, including Meralco, in 2016. The decision will delay construction of the Atimonan plant as it undergoes a CSP.[32][33]

Opposition

June 2015: Marchers protest proposed coal plant in Atimonan

In June 2015, more than 1,500 protesters, led by church leaders, staged a march and a prayer vigil in opposition to the project. The protest, which was named "Lakad-Dasal-Bibliya para sa Kalikasan (roughly translated: "Bible prayer walk for nature") began with a march in which participants circled the town, then stopped in front of the municipal hall before continuing to Our Lady of the Angels Parish Church. At the church, the protesters heard speeches, performed dances and songs, and then held an overnight vigil.[34]

In October 2017, activists rallied in front of the Bank of the Philippine Islands office in Ayala Triangle to protest its financing of the Atimonan coal plant. “Coal is not the answer to our country’s energy needs,” said Philippine Movement for Climate Justice Coordinator Ian Rivera. “Contrary to the coal industry’s persisting propaganda, coal is neither cheap nor clean. In fact, it has time and again been proven to be dirty, costly, and deadly.”[35]

In November 2019 activists filed a petition with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to cancel the Environmental Compliance Certificate for the plant due to “breaches to environmental and community education requisites," including cutting of coconut trees without a permit and failure to conduct a Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) program about the plant's impacts.[36]

October 2017: Activists protest in front of the Bank of the Philippine Islands

In September 2020, environmental activists rallied around a Philippine diocese in Quezon province demanding the government stop the construction of new coal-fired plants in the area as it is inconsistent with the efforts to mitigate climate change.[37] Bishop Mel Rey Uy of Lucena released a statement, signed by over 100 members of the clergy, on Tuesday, September 1, 2020, calling for plans for the proposed power plants to be scrapped.[37]

September 2020: Activists lead anti-coal protest[37]

Coronavirus interruption

In 2020, Meralco announced that due to health and safety issues posed by the coronavirus outbreak it had temporarily stopped pre-construction "site activities" on various power projects, including at the Atimonan plant.[38] Site work resumed in June 2020 as the Philippine government relaxed quarantine measures in Luzon.[39]

October 2020 moratorium on greenfield coal plants

On October 27, 2020 the Philippine Department of Energy imposed a moratorium on the construction of new or "greenfield" power plants, meaning those which have yet to begin construction.[40] Meralco subsequently confirmed that its planned greenfield coal plants were cancelled.[41] In November 2020 DOE Secretary Alfonso Cusi clarified that projects listed as "indicative" by the DOE would still be considered and might still be developed.[42]

Despite previous statements, a news article in November 2022 quoted Meralco executives as affirming that "the project was not covered by the coal ban imposed under the term of former Energy Secretary" and that "the moratorium would not affect the Atimonan project as it secured the Department of Energy’s approval as a committed coal project" [43]

Financing

A 2018 news reports state that the Atimonan power station had secured a preliminary financing deal with eight local banks for a Php107.5b (US$2.1b) loan.[44][45] According to BankTrack, known funders of the Atimonan power station include ESB International, the World Bank through local bank Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC), Bank of the Philippine Islands, and Philippine National Bank.[46]

In December 2020, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) committed to stop financing new coal-fired power stations.[47] In April 2021, a spokesperson for the Power for People Coalition in the Philippines stated that a US$$1.056 billion loan from Bank of the Philippine Islands "did not push through."[48]

In 2017, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice lodged a formal complaint against the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for its involvement in Philippine coal-fired power stations. The complaint alleged that the IFC had funded these projects through its financial support to Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC). The Atimonan power station was one of 11 power stations for which the IFC's involvement was found to be sufficient to trigger the IFC's internal accountability process.[49]

LNG Power Station

As of April 2023, Atimonan One Energy Inc. (A1E), a subsidiary of Meralco PowerGen Corp., has dropped its plan to build a coal-fired power plant in Quezon province and will instead construct a 2,400 MW combined cycle gas turbine power project and a LNG terminal with floating storage. The power plant will be constructed in two phases of 1,200 MW each phase[31]. So far, only plans for the first 1,280 MW have been announced and are seeking approvals. A1E aims to begin construction of phase 1 of the project within the third quarter of 2023. Phase 1 is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2026. The power output will be transmitted to the Luzon grid via a 23-kilometer, 500-kV transmission line to the New Pagbilao substation[31]. In March 2023, the project was approved to undertake the System Impact Study on the national grid by the Department of Energy[50].

Former Project Details: Cancelled coal plant

  • Sponsor: Atimonan One Energy Inc. (A1E)
  • Parent company: MERALCO
  • Location: Barangay Villa Ibaba, Atimonan Municipality, Quezon Province, Philippines
  • Coordinates: 14.0569, 121.86168 (exact)
  • Status: Cancelled (2023)
  • Gross capacity: 1200 MW (2 x 600 MW)
  • Type: Ultra-supercritical
  • Projected in service: Unit 1: 2025; Unit 2: TBD
  • Coal type: Unknown
  • Coal source: Indonesia and/or Australia
  • Source of financing:

Articles and Resources

References

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 https://web.archive.org/web/20240125084636/https://manilastandard.net/business/power-technology/314321964/atimonan-switches-to-2400-mw-lng-plant.html. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20230506161101/http://www.doe.gov.ph/sites/default/files/pdf/electric_power/06_Luzon%20Indicative%20-%202023-03-31.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 06 May 2023. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |archive-date= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20240125191727/https://www.doe.gov.ph/sites/default/files/pdf/electric_power/annex-a-coe-to-ngcp-01-jan-april-2023_clearance-to-undertake-sis.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 January 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20240125082951/https://www.doe.gov.ph/sites/default/files/pdf/electric_power/private_sector_initiated_power_projects/06_Luzon-Indicative-July-2023.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 January 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. 5.0 5.1 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20231015172339/http://www.doe.gov.ph/sites/default/files/pdf/electric_power/Annex-A-SIS-Summary-January-to-August-2023.PDF. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 October 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. John Bello, "SP okays 3rd coal-fired plant in Quezon," BusinessMirror, 19 February 2015
  7. Diarmaid Williams, Philippines set for 23 new coal-fired power plants," Power Engineering, 30 June 2015
  8. "Meralco searching for partners for 1,200 MW Quezon coal plant," Rappler, November 29, 2015
  9. Victor V. Saulon, "Meralco: More guidance on energy mix," BusinessWorld Online, February 28, 2016
  10. "Meralco to seal partnership for $2-B Atimonan project this year," Resaph, Sep 15, 2016
  11. Meralco to raise P110 billion for Quezon coal plant, Business Mirror, 7 Mar. 2017.
  12. MGen receives proposals for Atimonan power project, Manila Times, 27 Apr. 2017.
  13. Meralco PowerGen inks 10-year deal with Irish firm for O&M of Atimonan plant, The Philippine Star, Dec. 25, 2017
  14. ERC non-committal on approval of Meralco supply deals, Manila Bulletin, Feb. 13, 2018
  15. Meralco to proceed with construction of Atimonan coal plant, The Philippine Star, Oct. 31, 2018
  16. Gov’t urged to expedite approval of power supply deals, Philippine News Agency, Apr. 30, 2019
  17. MGen submits land plan for Atimonan coal power plant, PhilStar, Apr. 3, 2019
  18. Averting a potential power crisis, PhilStar, Jul. 10, 2019
  19. Bayan Muna says power supply bidding rigged in favor of Meralco plant, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Oct. 31, 2019
  20. Meralco urged to open 2nd CSP to all power plants, The Philippine Star, Nov. 1, 2019
  21. PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATED POWER PROJECTS (LUZON) COMMITTED, Philippine Department of Energy, 31 Aug., 2019
  22. Meralco eyes 3,000 MW capacity, PhilStar, May 28, 2020
  23. Alena Mae S. Flores, Redondo Peninsula drops 660-MW Subic coal project, Manila Standard, Apr. 28, 2021
  24. Gabriel Pabico Lalu, Cancelled coal-fired power plant project in Subic a victory for clean energy — eco groups, Inquirer, Apr. 30, 2021
  25. PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATED POWER PROJECTS (LUZON) COMMITTED, Philippine Department of Energy, Dec. 31, 2020
  26. LUZON COMMITTED POWER PROJECTS, Philippines Department of Energy, Mar. 31, 2021
  27. Communication with Philippine Movement for Climate Justice, July 4, 2022
  28. LUZON COMMITTED POWER PROJECTS, Philippine Department of Energy, Aug. 31, 2022
  29. LUZON COMMITTED POWER PROJECTS, Philippine Department of Energy, Dec. 31, 2022
  30. LUZON COMMITTED POWER PROJECTS, Philippine Department of Energy, April 17, 2023
  31. 31.0 31.1 31.2 Alena Mae S. Flores, Atimonan switches to 2,400-MW LNG plant, Manila Standard, Apr. 16, 2023
  32. SC decision to delay construction of Atimonan coal power plant, says Meralco, GMA News Online, May 28, 2019
  33. SC says power supply agreements must undergo competitive bidding, Inquirer.net, May 8, 2019
  34. "Quezon townsfolk cry: Enough of coal power plants," Inquirer.net, 6 June 2015
  35. Activists protest financing of coal projects, Business Mirror, 5 Oct 2017.
  36. Green groups, Quezon locals file petition vs Atimonan coal plant ECC, Nov. 27, 2019
  37. 37.0 37.1 37.2 Philippine diocese, activists oppose coal power plants, Vatican News, 20 Sep 2020.
  38. Meralco unit stops work on power projects, Manila Bulletin, Mar. 27, 2020
  39. MGen resumes construction of power plants, BusinessWorld, Jun. 5, 2020
  40. Jordeene B. Lagare, DoE issues ban on new coal plants, Manila Times, Oct. 28, 2020
  41. Lenie Lectura, Major coal players to abide by D.O.E. ban on ‘new’ projects, Business Mirror, Oct. 29, 2020
  42. Philippines mulls ban on greenfield coal-fired plants, IJ Global, Nov. 5, 2020
  43. Alena Flores, MGen wants Atimonan to secure Meralco deal, Manila Standard, Nov. 6, 2022
  44. Meralco may turn Atimonan coal plant into merchant facility, Business Mirror, Oct. 31, 2018
  45. Philippine utility Meralco hunts for partners for Atimonan coal-fired plant, Asian Power, 2018, Accessed Oct. 19, 2021
  46. Five Years Lost: How Finance is Blowing the Paris Carbon Budget, BankTrack, 2020, p. 50
  47. Philippine bank RCBC to stop lending for new coal-fired power projects, Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, Dec. 11, 2020
  48. Green energy group hopeful Meralco will exit Atimonan coal project, CNN Philippines, Apr. 30, 2021
  49. CAO ASSESSMENT REPORT Regarding Concerns in Relation to IFC’s Investment in Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) – 01 (#30235, #32853, #34115, #37489) in the Philippines, IFC Compliance Advisor Ombudsman, April 2019
  50. "List of Generation Projects issued with Clearance to Undertake System Impact (SIS) to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines: January to April 2023" (PDF). Republic of the Philippines Department of Energy. April 2023. Retrieved May 23, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

Additional data

To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.