TOKYO, Japan”•The Philippines can benefit from the creation of a coal organization similar to a Japan group that is involved in research and development to promote the use of clean coal, industry executives said.
Coal accounts for 26 percent of Japan’s power requirements and around 30 percent of the Philippines’ generation supply.
Japanese stakeholders organized Japan Coal Energy Center or JCoal in 1990 as a one-stop center for energy and coal development utilization under the supervision of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
“It would be likewise good to explore the potential of having a formal initiative or perhaps a group that will work towards the achievement of attaining similar advocacy towards sustainable energy on coal development,” Meralco PowerGen Corp. vice president for external affairs Litz Santana said.
JCoal is composed of 138 member companies in a wide range of coal business such as coal mining, power, steel, heavy industries, engineering and trading.
JCoal is also actively involved in the research and development of clean coal technologies that have the least environmental impact and minimized emissions.
“We continue to seek and look for best practices in the utilization of clean coal technology. We wish to continue to understand the available technologies that will ensure the efficient and environmental sustainability of this power resource,” Santana said.
Meralco PowerGen, through a subsidiary, is set to build the country’s first ultra supercritical coal-fired power plant in Atimonan, Quezon with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts.
Japan did not abandon coal as a fuel source but instead improved its coal facilities through clean coal technologies. Japan still has coal plants that were around 50 years old but most of these old plants were upgraded to more efficient clean coal technologies in recent years.
Japan put up its first ultra super critical coal fired power plants as early as 1990s but the Philippines has yet to complete its first super critical power plant”•the 500-MW San Buenaventura coal-fired power plant which is due for completion in June 2019.
“In Japan, the first coal-fired USC [ultra super critical] plant started, and already an operating experience of more than 20 years from 1993. Now more than half of Japan’s coal-fred power plant is USC plant,” Masahiro Ozawa, JCoal Group deputy director for Advanced Thermal Power Plant Technology Group, Business Development Department.