Power utility giant Manila Electric Company (Meralco) formally slates the "competitive challenge" for the 500-megawatt renewable energy (RE) capacity that will partly address its requirement for mid-merit capacity.

Interested bidders will challenge the unsolicited proposal originally submitted by Ahunan Power Inc. (API), a subsidiary firm of Razon-led Prime Infrastructure Capital Inc.

The power supply agreement (PSA) on challenge will be for a period of 20 years; and the delivery of the required capacity shall kick off on February 26, 2026.

In the competitive selection process (CSP) notice issued by the third party bids and awards committee (TPBAC) of Meralco, it stipulated that “interested challengers have until August 10 to submit their expression of interest.”

For the pre-bid conference - which will serve as a venue for interested parties to raise their questions and concerns on the CSP undertaking - this is scheduled on August 11; while the bid submission deadline will be on September 14.

“After the opening of pre-qualification document submissions on the same day, the TPBAC will declare the number of days needed for the pre-qualification evaluation,” Meralco said.

Specifically, it was stated that the “opening of bid prices and notification of best bid will take place not earlier than seven (7) days after the TPBAC’s issuance of bid bulletin announcing the results of the pre-qualification evaluation.”

As culled from the original proposal lodged by API, its tender for the 500MW capacity had been set at P4.0511 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), being the headline rate and levelized cost of electricity.

Under the Razon firm’s proposal, the mid-merit capacity it targets to deliver to Meralco will lean on pumped hydro storage facilities that shall be sited in Pakil, Laguna; as well as in San Mateo and Antipolo, Rizal.

The approved terms of reference (TOR) of the CSP specified that “supply can come from a single or portfolio of plants, provided that the minimum configuration is sufficient to meet the contract capacity,” with emphasis that “the guaranteed output should be solely contracted to Meralco.”

It was similarly prescribed that “100-percent of the contract capacity should be available for 6 to 12 hours daily covering Meralco’s peak hours, for at least 84 hours a week.”

This is already the second CSP that Meralco will be carrying out for solicitation of capacity for its mid-merit power supply portfolio – the initial one had been for 850MW solar development that is currently under negotiation following its TPBAC’s declaration of failed bidding on at least two rounds of competitive tendering.