EDC firms up geothermal deal with Aussie firm

MANILA, Philippines - Energy Development Corp. (EDC), the country’s largest producer of geothermal energy, has firmed up an agreement with Australian renewable energy firm Hot Rock Ltd. (HRL) to develop four concession areas in Chile and Peru.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, EDC said it has successfully concluded negotiations with HRL to explore and develop the geothermal potential of the Calerias and Longavi projects in Chile and the Quellaapacheta and Chocopata projects in Peru.

Under the agreement, EDC will own a 70 percent interest in each of the concession areas while HRL will take the remaining 30 percent.

“A full team of geothermal scientists will be deployed to Chile this month to start development activities on the joint venture projects,” EDC said.

HRL is an Australian company listed on the ASX and has acquired 23 geothermal tenements across Chile, Peru and Australia. With an experienced and accomplished geothermal team, the company has been among the first to identify and obtain some of the most attractive concession areas in Latin America.

EDC president and chief operating officer Richard B. Tantoco last week said the company bagged its first international concession contract in Chile called Newen, allowing it to develop the area and later build a geothermal facility should reserves in the area prove economically feasible.

Aside from Chile and Peru, the company is also looking at opportunities to develop geothermal projects in Indonesia and Kenya.

From exploration and production of water-based steam power to generation of electricity for commercial use, EDC builds some of the world’s pioneering and most complex steam fields banking on its highly skilled manpower and homegrown technology that are fast becoming benchmarks in the industry. EDC has more than 1,400 megawatts under its green power portfolio diversified by the acquisition of a hydropower project and wind power projects in the pipeline.