EDC ready to help Negros become 100% powered by RE

GEOTHERMAL leader Energy Development Corporation (EDC) is willing to help Negros become a greener island through 100% clean, reliable renewable energy (RE) from its geothermal portfolio.

“Our vision is for Negros to be the first island in the Philippines to be 100% powered by RE,” said Norreen G. Bautista, head of EDC’S Corporate Social Responsibility team in Negros Island.

EDC’S 222.5-megawatt (MW) Southern Negros Geothermal Project (SNGP) located in Valencia, Negros Oriental has been operating for almost 40 years. This is EDC’S 2nd largest geothermal facility, contributing 19% of the company’s 1,181-megawatt (MW) geothermal portfolio. It is also responsible for putting EDC and the Philippines on the map as the world’s 3rd largest geothermal producer, something that every Negrosanon should be proud of since it has also helped Negros become a green island.

The geothermal facility currently supplies clean, renewable power to four out of five electric cooperatives (EC) in Negros Island: 2 MW to Negros Oriental I Electric Cooperative, 25 MW to Negros Oriental II Electric Cooperative, 20 MW to Central Negros Electric Cooperative, and 3 MW to Northern Negros Electric Cooperative. All these comprise about 16% of the island’s power supply out of its peak demand of 312MW.

“These EDC geothermal power plants ensure that Negros consumers get stable and reliable power in the island while the power supply agreements that the four ECS have with us ensure competitively priced power rates that protect them from volatile price increases brought about by coal price movements indexed on FOREX and coal fuel prices,” confirmed Bautista.

Still, EDC’S existing total geothermal portfolio mostly from its Leyte power plants allows the company to provide more clean, reliable power at competitive rates even to Negros Island. Its 711.4MW Leyte geothermal facility has the biggest wet steam in the world and is the company’s biggest site. Power from these geothermal plants will be more than enough to supply all the power requirements of all the Negros Electric Cooperatives and their electricity consumers.

“More power from geothermal energy would mean a low carbon island for Negros, which is consistent with both Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental’s goal for their respective provinces and is crucial to fighting the climate crisis that the whole world is in right now,” added Bautista.

Geothermal is considered as the Holy Grail among sources of RE because it is the only one that can provide continuous power 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Hence, EDC refers to it as geo 24/7.PR