Meralco signs 20-year biogas supply deal

A Meralco employee examines a transformer in Navotas City. — PHILIPPINE STAR/RYAN BALDEMOR

MANILA ELECTRIC CO. (Meralco) has entered right into a 20-year power supply agreement (PSA) with First Quezon Biogas Corp. (FQBC) to source a part of its renewable energy (RE) supply from a 1.4-megawatt (MW) biogas power plant.

In a press release on Monday, Meralco said it should draw 1.25 MW from FQBC’s biomass power plant positioned in Candelaria, Quezon province, a facility that converts locally sourced agricultural waste into electricity.

“We hope that the signing of the PSA would encourage more investment in biogas to assist local communities and to further develop this sort of RE technology,” Meralco Senior Vice-President and Head of Regulatory Management Jose Ronald V. Valles said.

In line with Meralco, the ability plant provides “sustainable disposal solution” for agricultural waste and manure from farms within the province, reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The PSA, which is scheduled to begin on June 26, 2026, can be submitted to the Energy Regulatory Commission for review and approval.

The brand new deal forms a part of Meralco’s compliance with its obligation under the renewable portfolio standards (RPS), which mandate electricity suppliers to source a portion of their RE requirement. At present, the RPS requirement increases by 2.52% per yr.

So far, the ability distributor has secured a complete of 1,535 MW in RE capability from various suppliers, surpassing its initial goal of 1,500 MW. The corporate expects RE to account for 26% of its supply portfolio by 2030.

Meralco’s majority owner, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of the PLDT Useful Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

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