“We want to bid it out as soon as possible, hopefully, in the third quarter,” a senior government official reportedly said.
The 100 km Batman-1 pipeline will be supplied by gas from the Malampaya deep-water-gas-to-power project, delivering natural gas from Tabangao in Batangas to the decommissioned 850 MW Sucat bunker fuel-fired power plant.
The Sucat facility, owned by National Power Corporation, is to be converted into a natural gas facility by the successful bidder.
One of the reasons for the delay in the commencement of the bidding process was the Filipino Government’s difficulties in drawing up the terms of reference to make it sufficiently attractive for prospective investors.
“It’s a complicated project because we want bidders who are willing to do everything – from the pipeline to the conversion of the Sucat plant. We want everything to be integrated,” said the official.
PNOC is also planning to build a power plant to serve as the anchor load for the planned Batman-1 and 140 km Bataan – Manila (Batman-2) gas pipelines. The plant will be built in Batangas, Laguna or Cavite, depending on the results of a feasibility study.
The Batman-2 project also involves setting up a LNG receiving terminal, conversion of the 620 MW Limay combined-cycle plant to gas-fired, and construction and operation of the Batman-2 pipeline.