Holcim Philippines tapped First Gen Corp. to supply electricity from a geothermal energy source to its Mindanao manufacturing plants in line with its decarbonization direction.
First Gen said in a statement over the weekend it would provide Holcim with electricity from a clean and renewable energy source to meet 22 percent of the power needs of its manufacturing facilities in Bunawan, Davao City; and Lugait, Misamis Oriental.
First Gen is the country’s largest producer of renewable energy (RE) with at least 1,651 megawatts of total RE capacity from a portfolio of 26 power plants running on geothermal, hydro, wind and solar energy.
It also owns and operates four other power plants with over 2,000 MW of capacity running on natural gas, the cleanest form of fossil fuel.
First Gen said it would supply Holcim with clean energy from the geothermal plant in North Cotabato of its subsidiary Energy Development Corp., the country’s largest vertically-integrated geothermal company.
“We are pleased to partner with Holcim Philippines to grow viably while decarbonizing. It’s not an easy journey to decarbonize and provide for a regenerative future. This requires collaboration not just through supplying power, but also through solutions that maximize and optimize electricity requirements and working to find a pathway towards net zero,” said First Gen president and chief operating officer Francis Giles Puno.
The partnership between First Gen and Holcim was enabled by the recent introduction in Mindanao of the government’s Retail Competition and Open Access (RCOA) program.
Eligible power consumers whose monthly average peak demand reaches at least 500 kilowatts can choose their own electricity suppliers under the program.
“This partnership is a significant step towards meeting our goal to source 65 percent of our power needs from renewable energy by 2030 to decarbonize our business. We are excited and confident to work with First Gen, a company that shares our strong commitment to sustainability and a leading provider of renewable energy in the country,” said Holcim Philippines president and chief executive Nicolas George.
Holcim Philippines is one of the country’s largest construction materials providers with four cement manufacturing plants, aggregates and dry mix businesses and technical support facilities for building solutions.
The company has reduced its carbon footprint by more than 20 percent since 2018 by producing more blended cements, replacing coal with qualified wastes as alternative fuels and raw materials, shifting to renewable energy, and improving efficiency of operations.
The company is a member of the Net Zero Carbon Alliance—a multi-sectoral movement aimed at building collaborative pathways for organizations to get on a path towards decarbonization.
