MANILA, Philippines - AboitizPower Corp. (APC) has started the supply of its clean power brand to San Fernando Electric Light and Power Co. (SFELAPCO), the company said.
The power will come from APC’s Tiwi -MakBan geothermal facilities which are being operated by its wholly-owned subsidiary AP Renewables Inc. (APRI) and have recently been granted a certificates of compliance (COC) by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) after they were found to be compliant with the required environmental, technical and financial standards.
APC has previously supplied 25 megawatts (MW) of Cleanergy to SFELAPCO, which inked an agreement with the power supply and distribution company on Nov. 11, 2009.
“Part of Cleanergy’s thrust is to have a future wherein both people and business power their activities with cleaner and renewable power. We are well into that future, thanks to the companies and organizations that have made the responsible choice of choosing Cleanergy,” APC president and CEO Erramon Aboitiz said.
SFELAPCO senior vice president Antonio de Leon, for his part, said the deal with APC is “a unique case of a win-win situation.”
“We buy power at a cheaper price, the customer pays less because of no VAT on renewables and the world wins because of smaller carbon footprint from geothermal energy. A triple whammy indeed,” he said.
In the succeeding months until December 2012, APC will be SFELAPCO’s exclusive energy supplier, during which the maximum contract demand is expected to reach 70 MW, and with an increased demand after a year, will hit 90 MW.
“We believe that as a distribution utility, it is our primary duty to serve our customers well and at the same time to treat our environment well. By going green, we achieve both goals simultaneously, SFELAPCO president Michael L. Escaler said.
SFELAPCO is a privately-owned distribution utility that has an average energy requirement of 35 million kwh per month for its residential, commercial and industrial customers. Its franchise area covers San Fernando City and the municipality of Floridablanca, and barangays Talang and Ligaya of the town of Guagua, all in the province of Pampanga.
APC is the holding company for the Aboitiz Group’s investments in power generation, distribution, retail and power services.
It is a major producer of renewable energy in the country with several hydroelectric and geothermal assets in its generation portfolio.
It also owns and operates distribution utilities located in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.