ERC grants second (2nd) COC to missionary area power provider
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) granted a second Certificate of Compliance (COC) to Bantayan Island Power Corporation (BIPCOR) on 24 August 2009 for the operation of two (2) additional units diesel-fired generating sets with an aggregate installed capacity of 638 kilowatts (kW) located in Barangay Bantigue, Bantayan, Cebu. BIPCOR was earlier granted a COC on October 19, 2006 for a Bunker C Fired generator with a capacity of 6 megawatts (MW) and a stand-by Diesel Genset with a capacity of 100 kilowatts (kW).
The acquisition of the new generating sets was prompted by the Power Supply Agreement (PSA) entered by BIPCOR with the Bantayan Island Electric Cooperative, Inc. (BANELCO), the sole electricity distribution utility (DU) of the island. The PSA obliges BIPCOR to supply the base load energy requirements of BANELCO for the first three (3) years of BIPCOR’s operation and then the total requirements of the DU for the rest of the 15-year cooperation period.
A COC is a document issued to a generation company (GenCo) or a self-generating facility (SGF) certifying compliance to the technical financial and environmental standards contained in the ERC’s rules for the Issuance of Certificate of Compliance for Generation Companies/Facilities, as amended.
BIPCOR was exempted from complying with some of the financial standards set by the ERC being an entity authorized to operate generation facilities in a missionary electrification area. The exemption will continue to be enjoyed by BIPCOR for the duration of the period in which it is provided a subsidy for undertaking the missionary electrification function. BIPCOR, however, hurdled all technical and environmental standards.
BIPCOR was organized primarily to serve the electrical power needs of the three (3) municipalities comprising the tourist popular Bantayan Island (off Cebu) namely: Sta. Fe, Bantayan and Madridejos.
August 27, 2009