Shell, Nickel Asia tie up to develop 1 GW of renewable energy

Shell group and Nickel Asia Corp. FILE PHOTO

The renewable energy unit of listed mining company Nickel Asia Corp. (NAC) sealed a deal with an entity under the Shell Group to develop 1 gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy (RE) projects in the Philippines by 2028.

NAC said the joint venture between subsidiary Emerging Power Inc. (EPI) and Shell Overseas Investments B.V. would, in the future, “potentially increase” the original target to 3 GW by developing, owning, operating and maintaining onshore RE projects.

The EPI-Shell venture will focus on utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV), but it will also evaluate opportunities in onshore wind and energy storage systems. It will initially roll out the projects in Luzon and the Visayas.

“This partnership would allow both companies to boost the supply of renewable energy in the Philippines and is in line with NAC’s vision to become the premier [environmental, social and governance] investment in the country,” NAC president and CEO Martin Antonio Zamora said.

According to NAC, the undertaking also presents an opportunity to provide value to customers by tapping the technical expertise of Shell Energy Philippines Inc., the retail electricity supplier of Shell Companies in the Philippines.

Clean energy goal

“This Shell-EPI partnership will leverage on Shell’s technical expertise and integrated solutions as a global energy company and EPI’s strong presence in the Philippines,” said Lorelie Osial, country chair of Shell Companies in the Philippines.

The government earlier laid out its target of increasing clean energy’s share in the energy mix to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040. To realize this goal, the country needs 79.3 GW of additional renewable capacity over the next two decades.

Coal-fired power plants remain the primary source of energy in the country, accounting for more than half of gross power generation.

Citing industry data, NAC said a gigawatt of solar PV can supply the annual daytime consumption of over 1.2 million homes in the country. A Filipino household typically consumes 200 kilowatt-hours a month.