Geothermal Energy in Philippines

The Philippines’ PetroEnergy Resources Corp. has signed an energy sales agreement with partner Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp. to purchase electricity generated by the 20 megawatt Maibarara geothermal energy project, which is schedule to come online by September 2013.

Maibarara Geothermal Inc. is constructing the geothermal power facility. PetroEnergy Resources said in a press release, “Maibarara Geothermal Inc. will sell the entire output of the plant starting in 3rd quarter of 2013, when the power facility is targeted to begin commercial operations. The energy sales agreement will be subject to review every five years.”

The Maibarara Geothermal Inc. 20 megawatt Maibarara geothermal energy project’s output will be channeled to Luzon’s electrical power grid. PetroEnergy Resources Corp. PECR’s subsidiary Petrogreen Energy Corp. will have a 65 percent equity stake in the Maibarara geothermal facility while Trans-Asia will hold a 25 percent equity share, with state-owned Philippine National Oil Company-Renewables Corp. retaining the remaining 10 percent.

For its pioneering effort as well as in bringing notches ahead the development and commercialization of the country’s geothermal energy at close to matching the world’s leader in the field, the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) was conferred this year the Client Leadership Award by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group.

Upon receiving the award at the Bank’s headquarters in Washington DC from IFC Executive Vice president and Chief Executive Officer Lars Thunell, EDC President and Chief Operating Officer Richard B. Tantoco remarked that the recognition “is indeed a solid testament to our groundbreaking and sustainable efforts to achieve development in our host sites where we serve 43 villages and 18,000 households.”

The geothermal energy firm enjoys a long-standing partnership with the IFC; with the latter consistently extending loans to various projects that the company has been setting into implementation.

“We are proud to call EDC a client and partner, and we look forward to exploring new opportunities to bring renewable energy solutions to other emerging markets," the IFC executive has noted. While at the IFC premises last week, Tantoco also made presentation at an on-going workshop at the bank on the Institutional Development Goals; and he also took the chance to share “EDC’s experience in linking strategies and targets to incentives, and using these business tools to impact development.”