Manila: An official of the state-owned Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) expressed optimism for the rehabilitation of the Agus-Pulangi Hydropower Complex (APHC) after receiving a proposal for this bid. PSALM President Dennis Dela Serna declined to identify the entity that submitted the proposal but said the goal is to rehabilitate all seven run-of-river hydroelectric power plants in the complex in Mindanao to their full capacity.

According to Philippines News Agency, PSALM targets to restore the full capacity of the facility in the APHC, which has a total capacity of about 1,000 megawatts. The privatization of the complex is prohibited under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), Dela Serna said. 'Currently, they are operating at less-than-ideal capacity. Hopefully, the winning concessionaire or bidder or proponent brings it back to capacity, and they're able to sell that electricity,' he said in an interview Tuesday.

'But upon further conversations with our congressmen, especially here, there are some limitations on the direct sale of that asset or privatization of that asset,' he added.