Mondelez taps EDC to power up Sucat plant

MANILA, Philippines — Snack food manufacturer Mondelez Philippines Inc. has tapped Lopez-led Energy Development Corp. (EDC) to power up its Sucat manufacturing plant with renewable energy (RE).

With the contract with EDC, the company’s manufacturing plant in Sucat, Parañaque City is now powered by 100 percent geothermal energy as supplied by EDC’s Bacon-Manito Geothermal Project in the Bicol region.

“We are honored to have a global company such as Mondelez Philippines sharing the same values as us,” EDC head of Business Development, Marketing, and Trading Marvin Kenneth Bailon said.

“Geothermal energy, for us, is the holy grail of renewable energy. It is the only baseload renewable energy, which means it can run 24/7, without depending on the seasons. This makes it a reliable source of uninterruptible power,” he said.

“Meanwhile, sourcing renewable energy from EDC adds to its other sustainable developments in the country, making Mondelez Philippines powered by 100 percent renewable energy,” Mondelez Philippines plant lead Atul Kulkarni said.

“We are proud to source our power from 100 percent renewable energy. Sustainability for our company is about preserving our world and its people. We all depend on just one planet. The smart and sustainable use of natural resources to reduce our environmental footprint is necessary now more than ever. This latest initiative complements our other sustainable projects in the Philippines,” he said.

Kulkarni said the company’s other RE developments include “a biomass boiler which uses biodegradable sources of fuel, a rainwater treatment facility to lessen water waste, plastic waste recycling projects, and solar power systems, which all contribute to the achievement of our sustainability goals.”

Globally, snack giant Mondel?z International Inc. has declared its 2020 sustainability goals, which include the 15 percent reduction of its absolute carbon dioxide emissions in its manufacturing worldwide by 2020.

The shift of its Sucat plant to 100 percent renewable power is Mondelez Philippines’ contribution towards achieving this goal.

The local unit is best known for providing Filipinos with their favorite snack products such as Eden cheese, Cheez Whiz, Tang powdered beverage, Oreo cookies, Toblerone, and Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate.

It aims to be a snacks leader in the country by providing consumers with the right snack, for the right moment and made the right way by setting the benchmark in being a responsible business and contributing to the community where they operate in.

EDC is one of the world’s largest geothermal producers and the country’s leading renewable energy company with an installed capacity of 1,471.8 megawatts (MW).

EDC is a subsidiary of the First Gen Corp., the country’s largest clean energy company, with a portfolio that includes natural gas, geothermal, solar, wind, and hydro.