Power giants bidding for Meralco’s 200-MW baseload supply deal

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January 16, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Power producers controlled by the Zobels, Lopezes, Aboitiz family and San Miguel group are vying to supply 200 megawatts (MW) of baseload electricity to utility giant Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).

In a pre-bid conference yesterday, Meralco named 15 companies that have indicated their intent to supply its baseload renewable energy requirements for a four-year period.

These include the Ayala Group’s ACEN Corp., SanMar Solar Inc., Negros Island Solar Power Inc. and Sinocalan Solar Power Corp., alongside Lopez-led BacMan Geothermal Inc., Energy Development Corp., First Gen Hydro Corp. and Greencore Geothermal Inc.

Also joining the bidding are the Aboitiz family’s AP Renewable Energy Corp., Therma Luzon Inc. and Therma Visayas Inc. as well as San Miguel-led Mariveles Power Generation Corp., GNPower Kauswagan Ltd. Co., GNPower Mariveles Energy Center Ltd. Co. and Sual Power Inc.

Bidders are expected to submit their proposals by Feb. 16, coinciding with the opening of pre-qualification documents.

The notice of the best bid is scheduled to be issued on the same day or at least five days after the release of a bid bulletin announcing the results of the pre-qualification evaluation.

The power supply agreement resulting from this competitive selection process (CSP) will help Meralco meet its Renewable Portfolio Standards obligations.

Under the policy, distribution utilities like Meralco are required to source a portion of their electricity supply from eligible renewable energy plants.

For this latest Meralco CSP, even companies operating conventional plants can participate, but they will be required to offer financial guarantees in the form of renewable energy certificates (RECs).

Traded in the renewable energy market (REM), RECs are currently capped at P241.56 per megawatt-hour by the Energy Regulatory Commission.

The REM is the venue for buying and selling RECs equivalent to an amount of electricity generated from renewable power facilities.

To date, Meralco has contracted 1,536 MW of renewable electricity capacity from multiple suppliers, exceeding its initial target of 1,500 MW.