Property developer Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC) has partnered with First Gen Corporation to supply geothermal electricity to several of its shopping malls in the Visayas and Mindanao.
The agreement covers more than 22 megawatts of renewable energy that will power eight malls and one supermarket owned by RLC, its subsidiary RL Commercial REIT (RCR), and affiliate Robinsons Supermarket Corporation (RSC). The deal was signed on March 13.
Facilities included in the agreement are Robinsons Galleria Cebu, Robinsons Fuente Cebu, Robinsons Antique, Robinsons Roxas, Robinsons North Tacloban, Robinsons Pagadian, as well as RCR’s Robinsons Ormoc and Robinsons Tacloban. Also covered is Shopwise in San Nicolas, Cebu City.
Power will come from First Gen’s geothermal plants in the Visayas and Mindanao. Electricity for the Visayas malls will be sourced from the Unified Leyte Geothermal Power Plants, while the Mindanao facility will be supplied by the Mt. Apo Geothermal Power Plant.
RLC said the partnership supports the JG Summit Holdings’s goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Using geothermal power will help the company cut emissions and reduce exposure to volatile electricity prices tied to global fuel markets.
RLC operates 57 malls nationwide and has investments in offices, homes, hotels, logistics facilities, and mixed-use estates. Around 10% to 15% of its electricity use already comes from renewable sources, including rooftop solar systems with a combined capacity of about 30 megawatts.
First Gen, one of the country’s largest renewable energy producers, operates about 1,700 megawatts of generating capacity from hydro, geothermal, solar, and wind plants across the Philippines. It also holds a stake in gas-fired power plants with a combined capacity of over 2,000 megawatts to help stabilize the power supply.
