"This challenge proposed by Meralco, with DOE (Department of Energy) approval, is a very intimidating bid process. It is the biggest deal in the region. When we were reviewing the published bidding rules, we were told by our colleagues that only a fool will dare contest a giant company with deep pockets and a wide network," Capellan said. She said the driving force behind the collaboration was the collective commitment "to dismantle the old notion of how power supply is acquired. We cannot afford not to submit a counter offer in this tender as it will shape future competitive selection process." SunAsia Energy is confident that Meralco will recognize the potential of distributed power in avoiding system losses and consider this radical approach to power procurement. "The combined expertise of multiple developers can match the proposal of a giant company. Of course, the success of this experiment rests in the hands of the DOE.