NEWS

MANILA, Philippines — Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc. (ACR), the investment holding firm of the Alcantara Group, said it remains on track with the completion of key power projects despite lower revenues in the first half of the year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, ACR said its key projects are all on track for completion starting early next year until 2022.

Among these key projects are the second 105-megawatt (MW) section of the 210 MW Sarangani Energy Corp. (SEC) baseload coal-fired power plant in Maasim, Sarangani the 15.1-MW run-of-river hydroelectric power plant at the Siguil River basin also in Maasim; and the 105-MW San Ramon Power Inc. (SRPI) baseload coal-fired power plant in Zamboanga City.

The company said SEC Section 2 is more than 80 percent complete and would start commercial operations in the first quarter of 2019.

The first 105-MW section of the SEC plant began operating in April 2016 and currently delivers power to more than three million people in the General Santos-Sarangani area and other parts of Mindanao.

“SEC 2 is expected to begin commissioning within the last quarter of this year and is set to contribute another 105 MW of baseload power to benefit an additional three million residents of South Cotabato, Davao del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Cagayan de Oro City and other key areas of the island,“ ACR said.

The P 3.7-billion Siguil Hydro power plant marks ACR’s entry into the renewable energy sphere. It is expected to begin commercial operations in the first half of 2020 and will provide power to Sarangani, Gen. Santos City and key municipalities of South Cotabato.

The 105-MW SRPI baseload plant, which will provide baseload power to Zamboanga City and other nearby areas, is expected to begin construction in the first half of 2019 and is targeted to commence commercial operations in 2022. The SRPI plant, once operational, will play a crucial role in stabilizing the power grid in the Zamboanga Peninsula.

ACR chief finance officer Robert Yenko said the company’s key projects would deliver an additional 225.1 MW to customers and help fuel the growth of Mindanao’s economy.

ACR earlier reported a 36.8 percent drop in its net earnings in the first half of the year to P120 million from P190.5 million in the same period last year.

Revenues slightly declined by 2.56 percent to P3.49 billion from P3.58 billion in the same period a year ago.

Yenko attributed this to higher costs and finance charges incurred during the period.

General and administrative expenses increased by nine percent from P172 million to P189 million in the first six months of 2018.

In contrast, ACR’s consolidated earnings before interest taxes depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased by 11 percent from P1.03 billion in 2017 to P1.15 billion in 2018.

“The substantial increase in consolidated EBITDA this year highlights our group’s solid operational efficiency,” Yenko said.

Yenko said the firm remains optimistic about future growth prospects, noting that in addition to ACR’s three major projects coming on-line starting next year, the company is actively pursuing new projects in the Visayas.

“Demand for power in the Visayas is likely to grow particularly in light of the economic recovery in Leyte and Samar. We are seriously looking at the Visayas region as a potential market particularly for our diesel capacity,” Yenko said.