SMC lines up 16 battery energy storage projects

MANILA, Philippines — San Miguel Corp. (SMC) has lined up 16 battery energy storage (BES) projects across the country as part of expanding its power portfolio into cleaner technologies.

Based on latest government data, SMCGP Philippines Energy Storage Co. Ltd. has secured the Department of Energy’s nod to conduct grid impact studies (GIS) on 16 BES projects with combined capacity of 520 megawatts (MW).

The GIS is necessary in determining if the electricity to be generated by the power project can be absorbed by the grid.

SMCGP Philippines Energy, a unit SMC Global Power Holdings Corp., is planning eight BES projects in Luzon. These are the 20-MW Angat BES in Bulacan, 20-MW Isabela BES in Isabela, 20-MW Laoag BES in Ilocos Norte, 20-MW Legazpi BES in Albay, 20-MW Limay BES in Bataan, 20-MW Mexico BES in Pampanga, 20-MW Mindoro BES in Mindoro and 20-MW San Roque / San Manuel BES in Pangasinan.

In Visayas, the power company is looking at the 20-MW Caticlan BES, the 40-MW Mactan BES in Cebu, 20-MW Iloilo BES and 20-MW Ormoc BES in Leyte.

Meanwhile, it is also planning four projects in Mindanao – the 20-MW Phividec BES in Misamis Oriental, 20-MW Malita BES in Davao, 20-MW Surigao / Butuan BES, and the 200-MW Zamboanga BES.

SMCGP Philippines Energy is formerly AES Philippines Energy Storage Co. Ltd., which SMC Global acquired through a share purchase agreement with AES Phil Investment Pte. Ltd. and Gen Plus B.V. for their respective stakes in Masinloc Power Partners Co. Ltd. (MPPCL) in December last year.

MPPCL owns the 630-megawatt (MW) Masinloc coal-fired power plant in operation, the 335-MW Masinloc 2 coal-fired power plant under construction and the 10-MW Masinloc energy storage project.

The transaction, valued at $1.9 billion, was completed in March this year.

SMCGP Philippines Energy is currently working on completing the 10-MW Kabankalan BES scheduled this year and to commission the 2x20-MW Kabankalan BES next year.

SMC president Ramon Ang earlier said the company was planning to develop 10,000 MW of renewable energy (RE) capacity in the next 10 years, focusing on RE technologies such as hydropower, wind, battery storage and ocean tidal.