MAKATI CITY, METRO MANILA – In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Alsons Consolidated Resources, Inc. (ACR) – the publicly-listed company of the Alcantara Group, reported that it has signed a $73.5 Million long term loan with a consortium of Philippine and foreign banks arranged by UBS AG (Singapore). ACR will utilize the loan to partially fund its power development projects in Mindanao and repay debts. ACR chairman Tomas I. Alcantara cited UBS AG for their successful completion of the facility and also thanked the lending banks for their support and trust in ACR.
ACR is developing coal-fired power plants to help provide a stable source of baseload power for Mindanao and ensure long-term power security for the island. These facilities are: the 105 MW San Ramon Power, Inc. (SRPI) plant in Zamboanga City and the 210 MW Sarangani Energy Corporation (SEC) plant in Maasim, Sarangani.
The SEC plant is one of only two power plants that will be operating by 2015 to help provide a sustainable and lasting solution to the four-year-old Mindanao power shortage. The first 105 MW section of the SEC plant is currently under construction and is already 76% complete. The first 105 MW section of the plant will begin the process of commissioning in May of 2015 and will commence operations by October of 2015. The SEC plant is expected to reach its full 210 MW capacity by the 4th quarter of 2016 or within the first half of 2017.
Apart from the coal fired power plants which are under development, ACR currently operates three diesel power plants in Mindanao. ACR’s diesel-fired power generation facilities are: the Southern Philippines Power Corporation’s (SPPC) 55 MW plant in Alabel, Sarangani, the 100 MW Western Mindanao Power Corporation (WMPC) plant in Zamboanga City, and the 103 MW Mapalad Power Corporation (MPC) plant in Iligan City. All three power facilities are contributing to alleviate the power shortage in Mindanao.
ACR is also embarking on renewable energy projects, particularly in run of river hydroelectric plants as well as solar power. The first of these projects is a 16 MW hydroelectric facility at the Siguil River in Maasim, Sarangani. The Siguil project is currently in the advanced stages of development and is expected to commence construction in 2015.
The Alcantara Group, through its other subsidiaries aside from ACR, is also engaged in aquaculture and agribusiness, property development and services. It has been an active player in the economic development of Mindanao and the rest of the Philippines for over fifty years.
