First Gen bags 1-yr clean energy supply contract

First Gen Corp. bagged another contract to supply clean energy to Philippine Bio-Industries, Inc. (PBI) for one year.

PBI, through parent firm W Hydrocolloids Inc., finalized late last month the deal with First Gen’s licensed retail electricity supplier Bac-Man Geothermal Inc. (BGI), which involves the supply of 650 kilowatts of renewable energy.

According to the Lopez-led company, the 150-megawatt (MW) Bacon-Manito geothermal power facilities in the Bicol Region shall provide power supply needs of PBI’s carrageenan production facilities in Calamba, Laguna.

BGI owns and operates the integrated geothermal facility.

“W Hydrocolloids ventured into a partnership with First Gen in our conscious effort to lower our carbon footprint and minimize carbon pollution’s impact on our environment,” said WHI President John Wee.

“With this partnership, we are now using 100-percent renewable energy in our PBI facility in Laguna and are also in the process of executing it for our Carmona plant facility in Cavite. This partnership aims to achieve our commitment to a sustainable future, from supporting ecological seaweed communities for our raw materials to using 100-percent eco-clean energy on our plant facilities,” he added.

Vega, for his part, expressed his gratitude to the WHI Group for accepting First Gen’s offer to shift to renewable energy.

“This partnership validates our optimism that there are thousands of other companies out there that, like WHI, share with us a common desire to pursue a decarbonized and regenerative future,” he said.

First Gen, an entity under First Philippine Holdings Corp., has installed capacity of 3,495 MW in its portfolio as of end-2020.

The Lopez-led company holds a portfolio of power plants running on renewable energy sources such as hydro, wind, solar, and geothermal. It also owns and operates power facilities that run on natural gas, considered the cleanest form of fossil fuel.