Local conglomerate Filinvest and global low-carbon energy services provider ENGIE, will pursue projects worth a total of 13.68 megawatts (MW) of solar energy and 11,400 refrigeration tons (RT) of sustainable cooling capacity.
In a statement, the partners said the projects will be developed under the joint venture company Filinvest-ENGIE Renewable Energy Enterprise Inc. (FREE) and the Philippine DCS Development Corp. (PDDC).
The projects include the13.68-MW solar facility supporting the energy requirements of Cemex, Nexperia and Merasenko Corp. and the cooling requirements of Festival Supermall in Filinvest City, Alabang.
“ENGIE and Filinvest have been working in partnership to advance the Philippines’ sustainability goals since 2015. ENGIE is proud to be part of these new initiatives, which build upon the positive impact we have already made together in improving access to renewable energy, reducing carbon dioxide emissions and fostering more environmentally sustainable economic development in the country,” said Thomas Baudlot, ENGIE South East Asia chief executive officer.
Juan Eugenio Roxas, FDC Utilities Inc. president and chief executive officer, said the services offered by the joint ventures will help companies from energy-intensive industries to achieve their sustainability goals.
“With these projects, customers in complex industries like cement and semiconductor manufacturing are taking action to decarbonize, setting an example for others, without compromising on their bottom lines and customer satisfaction,” Roxas noted.
Under the partnership, the largest of the solar projects is the 10.08 MW ground-mounted solar array with leading cement producer Cemex through one of its Philippine subsidiaries, APO Cement Corp. The project is located in Naga City, Cebu and projected to avoid more than 9,000 metric tons (MT) of carbon dioxide annually.
The Cebu solar project scheduled for deployed by next year is governed by a 25-year power purchase agreement.
Cemex Holdings Philippines, the parent company of APO Cement, has also entered into a memorandum of understanding with ENGIE to explore the implementation of various renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions for various project sites.
FREE, for its part, has secured a contract with Dutch semiconductor manufacturer Nexperia to implement 3-MW rooftop solar system for its facilities in Cabuyao, Laguna which manufactures approximately one billion microchips a year.
The remaining solar project to be pursued by the partnership relates to the 530-kilowatt rooftop solar project of Merasenko Corp. at its medical products facility at the Cebu Light Industrial Park in Cebu City.
As for PDDC, a low-carbon centralized cooling system will be developed for Festival Supermall in Alabang under a 20-year build, own, operate and transfer contract.
When completed, Festival Supermall, one of the country’s largest, will enjoy a sustainable centralized cooling system (CCS) with a capacity of 11,400 RT projected to save 47,500 MT of carbon dioxide over the contract’s 20-year term.
Set for commission by 2025, the CCS will complement Festival Supermall’s 2.8 MW rooftop solar system that started operations in 2021 and considered the current largest solar rooftop project in Metro Manila.
