The government on Monday formally turned over the operations of the 797-megawatt Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) hydroelectric power plant complex in Laguna to the Aboitiz-led Thunder Consortium after the group won the P36.27-billion privatization bid for the facility.

Thunder Consortium assumed operations of the 797-megawatt (MW) CBK complex following the privatization conducted by state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM).

Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower), through its subsidiary Aboitiz Renewables, Inc., holds a 64% stake in Thunder Consortium, which also includes Japan’s Sumitomo Corp. and Electric Power Development Co.

“This plant is more than a power facility. It’s really a ver, very strategic asset. It provides flexibility, stability, and resilience in a rapidly changing energy system. It allows us to manage peaks in demand, support reserves and integrate more renewable energy into the grid without compromising reliability,” AboitizPower Chairman Sabin M. Aboitiz said in his speech during the ceremonial turnover.

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

The complex had been operated under a 25-year build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer agreement between CBK Power Co. Ltd. and the National Power Corp. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera