MGen nears financing deal for 670-MW Singapore gas plant
Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen), the generation arm of Manila Electric Co., is strengthening its presence in Singapore, as it is set to finalize financing this week for its 670-megawatt (MW) gas plant on Jurong Island.
In an interview, MGen President and CEO Emmanuel V. Rubio said that the combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) facility, under its subsidiary PacificLight Power Pte. Ltd. (PLP), is slated for completion in the first quarter of 2029, likely in January or February.
“We’re trying to actually sign the financing this Friday,” Rubio told reporters. “So it will contribute quite significant income to MGen.”
While the company has not yet disclosed specifics on the financing, the new gas plant will be integrated with a large-scale battery energy storage system (BESS), generating enough power for an estimated 965,000 Singaporean households.
“Because it’s Singapore, it’s merchant,” Rubio said, indicating that the power facility will sell directly into the wholesale market.
The project is also designed to initially utilize 30 percent hydrogen, with the potential to fully transition to the clean energy source in the future.
PLP recently tapped the consortium of Mitsubishi Power and Jurong Engineering Ltd. (JEL) to develop the project, deploying Mitsubishi’s gas turbine with hydrogen co-firing capability.
MGen's subsidiary currently operates an 830-MW CCGT project and a 100-MW fast-start ancillary services facility, both also located on Jurong Island.
Apart from the overseas gas asset, MGen is also preparing to expand the capacity of the Calatagan solar farm in Batangas.
“We just took over SP New Energy Corp.’s (SPNEC) role [on the solar farm]… We’re going to expand the capacity by 10 MW,” Rubio said.
MGen, along with Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), previously took over the 63.3 MW-peak (MWp) solar facility, with an intent to extend their partnership beyond solar to include wind and energy storage system (ESS) projects.