The Consunji family-led DMCI Power Corp. is suggesting an exemption to the moratorium on new coal-fired power plants for off-grid regions to enable developers to construct new plants to lower energy prices.

In an interview, DMCI Power chairman and CEO Isidro Consunji said coal remains the most cost-effective alternative to diesel, predominantly used in off-grid regions.

SPUG

“I think the moratorium should not include SPUG (Small Power Utilities Group) since what you are replacing there is diesel which is the most expensive,” Consunji said.

For instance, DMCI Power’s 15-megawatt (MW) circulating fluidized bed coal plant in Masbate offers energy at P9 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), significantly lower than the P23 per kWh cost of diesel-powered plants.

Currently, the National Power Corp. manages 281 SPUG power plants nationwide. These facilities, located on islands and in isolated communities that lack connection to the main transmission grid, are mainly powered by diesel generators.

Last coal-fired power plant off-grid

Consunji also noted that DMCI Power has already secured the necessary approvals for a second coal plant in Palawan before the Department of Energy imposed a moratorium on new coal projects in October 2020.

Without changes in current policies, this may be the last coal-fired power plant built in off-grid areas.

The Palawan plant, located in Narra, is expected to have a capacity of 15 MW.