The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the incorporation of a retail energy supplier and energy consolidating firm of the Aboitiz Group and their Norwegian joint venture partner.

Documents at the SEC show, the joint venture firm is called SN Aboitiz Power-Res Inc. and is 60 percent-owned by Manila-Oslo Renewable Enterprise Inc. and 40 percent-owned by SN Power Holding Singapore Pte. Ltd.

SNAP-Res lists as its incorporator-directors Erramon Aboitiz, Luis Miguel Aboitiz, Antonio Moraza and Norwegians Tor Stokke and Erik Knive.

The new firm has an initial authorized capital of P1 million of which 250,000 shares with a par value of one peso per share has been subscribed.

Aside from the nominal shares of the incorporators, Manila-Oslo subscribed to 149,997 shares while SN Power subscribed to 99,998 shares of SNAP-Res.

Another Aboitiz-SN Power joint venture, hydropower developer SN Aboitiz Power Inc. (SNAP) said that it remains on track with its $280-million rehabilitation program for the 175-megawatt (MW) Ambuklao-Binga hydroelectric power plants.

SNAP is the joint-venture company formed by AboitizPower Corp. and SN Power, a Norway-based international hydropower company and is a commercial investor, developer and operator of hydropower projects in emerging markets.

The foreign partner operates hydropower plants in South America and Asia and is expanding into Africa through a separate subsidiary.

Mike Hosillos, SNAP external relations manager, told reporters that the rehabilitation of the Ambuklao-Binga hydro power plants is estimated to cost $280 million.

Hosillos said the rehabilitation project involves the recommissioning of the Ambuklao plant and upgrade the Binga plants in Benguet. Upon completion, according to the SNAP official, the combined capacity of the Ambuklao and Binga plants is expected to increase to 225 MW with an annual combined generation capacity of about 760-gigawatt-hours.

In December 2008, SNAP started the rehabilitation of the Ambuklao hydropower plant, which was shut down since 1999 due to damage from an earthquake.

SNAP aims to optimize the capacity of the Ambuklao hydropower plant to 105-MW from 75-MW and the Binga hydro plant to 120-MW from 100-MW.

“The rehabilitation of the Ambuklao’s first 25-MW unit is expected to be completed in July 2010, and that they expect all three units to be running by December 2010. While, the Binga hydro power’s rehabilitation program is expected to be complete by the first half of 2013,” Hosillos said.