Wärtsilä Supplying 23 MW Power Plant

Wärtsilä will engineer and equip a 23 MW power plant to the island of Bantayan, located in Cebu in the Visayas Region of the Philippines.

The power plant will supply electricity to the entire island, which currently undergoes frequent blackouts because of the lack of a reliable power supply. The order with Wärtsilä was placed in February by Isla Norte Energy Corp., the company which will build and operate the new plant. Isla Norte Energy Corp. is owned by Gigawatt Power Corporation and Vivant Energy Corp. The project is part of a 15-year power supply agreement between Vivant Energy and the Bantayan Electric Cooperative. The island, which has a population of approximately 79 000, has considerable potential for both business and tourism development and a reliable, efficient electricity supply is essential if this potential is to be realized.

“The new power plant is an essential element for a secure economic future for Bantayan island. We are, at the same time, actively seeking to deliver electricity to small islands throughout the region, and a capable, reliable partner with a strong local presence, such as Wärtsilä, is needed for this,” said Emil Andre Garcia, chief operating officer of Vivant Energy.

The plant will operate on two 16-cylinder Wärtsilä 32, and three 6-cylinder Wärtsilä 32 engines. The equipment is scheduled for delivery in autumn 2020, and the plant is expected to become fully operational in the first quarter of 2021.

Wärtsilä has earlier supplied Gigawatt and Vivant with two power plants in the Palawan, the largest off-grid market in the Philippines. Wärtsilä currently has an installed base of close to 1700 MW in the Philippines.