MANILA, Philippines —Po family-led Century Pacific Food Inc. is expanding its rooftop solar footprint and commissioning new biomass boilers as it underscored a broader shift to sustainable energy sources.
Century Pacific said in a statement on Tuesday that solar power panels were already in place in its largest manufacturing hub for tuna and coconut in General Santos City in Mindanao.
“From a capacity of 5.2 megawatts (MW), the operational solar capacity now stands at 8.6MW, representing a 65-percent increase, and is expected to be fully operational by March 2024,” the company said.
Century Pacific added that it has invested about P380 million in building and expanding its solar operations.
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“In addition to being an environmentally forward choice for [Century Pacific], investing in solar unlocks value for the company and enhances our operational resilience,” said Ted Po, the president and chief executive of Century Pacific.
Cut in coal use
Also, the company highlighted the use of coconut shells as biomass fuel for its boiler plants. This will cut coal consumption at the factory by around 36 percent, the company said.
“As demand for coconut products soar locally and abroad, our focus is on sustainable practices to mitigate our environmental impact,” said Noel Tempongko, vice president for the company’s coconut original equipment manufacturing business.
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“The expansion of our biomass boilers, (using) coconut shells from our operations also serves as an eco-friendly substitute for coal, contributing to substantial reductions in carbon emissions,” Tempongko added.
Century Pacific’s operations yield coconut shells, as by-products from the processing and production of coconut meat and various coconut derivatives such as desiccated coconut, cocomilk, oil, and flour