Gov't defers sale of Manila power plant to next month
Business World, Wednesday, January 5, 2005
The government has postponed the the sale of two state-owned power plants by a month to allow it to concentrate on the $2-billion privatization of the national power grid, officials said on Tuesday.
Froilan Tampinco, vice-president of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp., said the government now aimed to hold the bidding for a decommissioned 200-megawatt plant in Manila on February 18 instead of in January.
A 54-megawatt plant on Cebu island will be auctioned in March instead of February.
"We have not scheduled any sale of generating assets this month. We want to concentrate on Transco," Tampinco said, referring to the National Transmission Corp.
Transco was spun off from debt-laden National Power Corporation (Napocor) in 2002 to operate the state firm's transmission business.
The government missed its end-2004 target to award a 25-year concession contract to operate the grid and has extended the deadline to the first quarter this year.
The Philippines aims to privatize Transco and dozens of Napocor power plants to cut its huge budget deficit and attract private investors to the creaking power sector.
The privatization, forecast by Manila to raise up to $5 billion, is also seen as a litmus test for the government's pledge to reform the economy.
Napocor has debts of about $23 billion, or nearly a third of the nation's gross domestic product.
Last month, the government said it would absorb by end-December about P200 billion worth of bonds issued by Napocor to speed up the firm's privatization.
The Philippines sold its first major power plant to an Australian-Filipino group in December for a higher-than-expected $561.74 million.
The government also raised $5.16 million from the sale of five small hydropower plants in 2004. -- Reuters
The government has postponed the the sale of two state-owned power plants by a month to allow it to concentrate on the $2-billion privatization of the national power grid, officials said on Tuesday.
Froilan Tampinco, vice-president of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp., said the government now aimed to hold the bidding for a decommissioned 200-megawatt plant in Manila on February 18 instead of in January.
A 54-megawatt plant on Cebu island will be auctioned in March instead of February.
"We have not scheduled any sale of generating assets this month. We want to concentrate on Transco," Tampinco said, referring to the National Transmission Corp.
Transco was spun off from debt-laden National Power Corporation (Napocor) in 2002 to operate the state firm's transmission business.
The government missed its end-2004 target to award a 25-year concession contract to operate the grid and has extended the deadline to the first quarter this year.
The Philippines aims to privatize Transco and dozens of Napocor power plants to cut its huge budget deficit and attract private investors to the creaking power sector.
The privatization, forecast by Manila to raise up to $5 billion, is also seen as a litmus test for the government's pledge to reform the economy.
Napocor has debts of about $23 billion, or nearly a third of the nation's gross domestic product.
Last month, the government said it would absorb by end-December about P200 billion worth of bonds issued by Napocor to speed up the firm's privatization.
The Philippines sold its first major power plant to an Australian-Filipino group in December for a higher-than-expected $561.74 million.
The government also raised $5.16 million from the sale of five small hydropower plants in 2004. -- Reuters
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