The National Power Corp. (NPC) and the German-Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI) are exploring the possible use of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in off-grid areas of the Philippines.
The collaboration aims to promote knowledge transfer, modernization opportunities and the economic achievement of clean and affordable energy.
“With our mandate to provide electricity to rural areas and our commitment to optimizing power generation assets, this collaboration presents an opportunity to modernize power systems and reduce emissions. We believe this feasibility study will pave the way for a sustainable and climate-friendly energy transition in the Philippines,” Fernando Martin Roxas, NPC president, said in signing ceremonies formalizing the agreement in Quezon City.
The NPC said the joint project will produce a comprehensive feasibility study expected to support the modernization of power generating assets in off-grid areas by exploring the potential replacement of diesel-powered systems with green hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.
The state-run firm said this will help cut carbon emissions in an economically viable manner.
The GPCCI said the selection of participating areas is ongoing but the most likely choice could come from the southern part of the country.
After the selection of sites, the study will take two to three months to complete and will help in deciding the applicable type of green hydrogen and fuel cell technology and its most suitable economic application.
“The Philippines is experiencing rapid growth in energy demand and the existing fossil fuel power generation capacity is unable to keep up with this growth in an environmentally friendly manner,” Stefan Schmitz, GPCCI president, noted.
The study is supported by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and implemented in three phases.
The initial phase involve the selection of two sites based on renewable resource availability, economic factors, accessibility and community support. NPC will provide the technical and economic data while the GPCCI will assist in data gathering.
Phase 2 involves the modeling of selected sites by the Reiner Lemoine Institut in collaboration with stakeholders, with the results presented internally to the NPC and to interested parties via a technical event.
Under phase 3, GPCCI will launch an information campaign to disseminate project results.
