Aboitiz-led consortium secures PCC nod for CBK hydro acquisition

ABOITIZ-LED Thunder Consortium has secured approval from the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) for the acquisition of the P36-billion Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) hydroelectric power plant (HEPP) complex in Laguna.

The PCC greenlighted the consortium’s acquisition of the 797-megawatt (MW) complex from state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) following the July bidding, Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower) said in a regulatory filing on Monday.

The winning bidder, Thunder Consortium, comprises Aboitiz Renewables, Inc., Sumitomo Corp., and Electric Power Development Co.

Aboitiz Renewables holds AboitizPower’s investments and interests in various renewable energy projects, including geothermal, large hydro, run-of-river hydro, wind, battery energy storage systems, and solar projects.

The CBK complex includes the 39.37-MW Caliraya HEPP in Lumban, the 22.91-MW Botocan HEPP in Majayjay, and the 366-MW Kalayaan I and 368.36-MW Kalayaan II pumped-storage plants, all in Laguna.

The hydro assets are under a 25-year build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer agreement between CBK Power Co. Ltd. and the National Power Corp.

PSALM is targeting turnover of the power plant in February 2026.

AboitizPower Chief Financial Officer Juan Alejandro “Sandro” A. Aboitiz earlier said the consortium expects to close the financial deal before the end of the year.

“The expectation is that when the asset gets turned over to us, it’s contributing earnings to us immediately,” he said.

AboitizPower holds an attributable net sellable capacity of 5,284 MW as of May 2025, including 1,187 MW of renewable energy and 4,097 MW of thermal capacity.

The company aims to expand total capacity to 9.2 gigawatts by 2030, targeting a 50:50 mix of renewable and thermal energy. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera