TIWI, ALBAY – Aboitiz Power Corporation (AboitizPower), through its subsidiary AP Renewables Inc., hosted the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Tiwi Binary Geothermal Power Plant Project on 17 January 2023, in Tiwi, Albay.
The soon-to-rise 17 megawatt (MW) binary plant is within the 1.5-hectare of land where the Tiwi Geothermal Power Plant, the first and oldest geothermal power plant in the Philippines, is located.
The project will be built from the ground up with an entirely new binary plant system, pipes, and transmission line.
Geothermal energy, a form of renewable energy, comes from the earth's heat and is produced by drilling production wells into the ground to tap high temperature fluids from geothermal reservoirs.
Residual heat from the hot brine side of the geothermal production process, otherwise unutilized before reinjecting back to the earth, is harvested to produce electricity through the binary geothermal power plant.
The concept of recovering heat from the geothermal brine and converting it into electricity is a novel solution that improves its overall thermal efficiency. In addition, the binary plant has no emission to the environment as its binary fluid operates in a closed-loop system.
Construction on the binary plant is targeted for completion by the end of 2023.
APRI President and COO Jeffrey Estrella and AP COO for Renewable Energy Generation Alexander Coo, together with the Department of Energy (DOE) Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan led the groundbreaking ceremony.
APRI President and COO Jeffrey Estrella explained, “The Tiwi Binary Power Plant is a facility designed to extract the recoverable heat from the geothermal brine that is processed in a closed-loop system where no harmful gas or liquid is being emitted nor any waste products are discharged to the atmosphere.
The design will produce an additional 17MW gross generated electricity – an additional source of clean energy to the Luzon Grid.”
The APRI Tiwi Binary Project is one of the testaments to AboitizPower’s ambition to grow its Cleanergy attributable capacity by the end of the decade. Cleanergy is AboitizPower’ renewable energy (RE) solutions brand. Through Cleanergy facilities across the country, power derived from run-of-river, large hydro, solar, geothermal, and soon, wind, are harnessed to provide clean, zero-emissions energy to business and communities.
By the end of 2030, AboitizPower will significantly expand its Cleanergy portfolio, in support of the government’s efforts to promote renewable energy in the country. AboitizPower will build an additional 3,700 MW of RE, growing its capacities to 4,600 MW or three times the company's current renewables portfolio by 2030. The company has around 1,000 MW of disclosed RE projects and is on its way toward achieving its targets.
AboitizPower Chief Renewables Officer Jimmy A. Villamoran delivered his sincerest thanks to its partners. He said, “This is as much of an achievement for AboitizPower as it is for our partners, especially the good folks from Ormat Technologies, Desco, and our friends from the Philippine Geothermal Production Company (PGPC). As our country embarks on an energy transition, we recognize we must work with others both within and outside our industry to contribute to the nation’s energy goals. The scale of the transformation of the country’s energy system requires collaboration and innovation. This project is a testament to that.”
APRI’s stakeholders like the Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM), Provincial Capitol of Albay, Municipality and Local Government Units of Tiwi, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Philippine Geothermal Production Company (PGPC), and National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), National Power Corporation (NPC), and contractors also graced the event.
