Tongonan: Symbol of resilience, progress, sustainability
Written by: Tina-Arceo Dumlao
In front of the Tongonan facility in Leyte is a large turbine that had been installed at the Tongonan 1 plant when it started operating in 1983, a visual reminder of where it started and how far Energy Development Corp. has gone.
Back then, it was a revolutionary idea to generate power from geothermal energy and Tongonan’s operation put the Philippines on the map.
But through tenacity and firm commitment to its mandate to developing indigenous energy resources, EDC has only improved and enhanced its expertise to the point that it now is the world’s largest vertically integrated renewable company.
EDC began as a unit of the state-run Philippine National Oil Co., which was created to explore indigenous sources in response to the global oil crisis in the 1970s.
After years of intensive exploration and development work, PNOC-EDC inaugurated Tongonan-1 on July 2, 1983.
That commitment to add to the country’s renewable energy capacity did not waver and indeed held firm under the Lopez Group, which acquired PNOC-EDC’s geothermal operations in 2007 and sought to raise its level of operations and service under Energy Development Corp.
EDC today lays claim to being the pioneer in the field and the largest 100-percent renewable energy producer in the Philippines, which has earned the distinction of being the third-largest producer of geothermal energy in the world after the United States and Indonesia.
Geothermal power plants generate power using natural heat and steam from beneath the earth’s surface. It is the only type of clean and renewable energy that can provide uninterrupted power, 24/7, unlike, for example, solar, hydro, and wind plants whose output is affected by and dependent on the weather.
The 123-MW Tongonan facility has been operating for over 40 years, a testament to EDC’s long-standing commitment of providing a reliable source of clean 24/7 energy for Filipinos.
Through the years, the Leyte complex has expanded to 715.3 megawatts, making it the country’s largest geothermal energy source and also the largest wet steam field globally, a recognition of which EDC mother company First Gen Corp. is proud.
What is deemed even more remarkable is that it has been able to continue operations beyond the average of 25 years for power plants of its size.
This in large part to the indigenous knowledge developed over the years by the trained and dedicated personnel of EDC, which today has 31 production wells and nine reinjection wells across the Philippines.
EDC, however, is not about to stop innovating at 40 years, and has embarked on an expanded mission after marking a banner year in 2023 with earnings reaching record highs to “forge collaborative pathways for a decarbonized and regenerative future.”
This means investing heavily in other forms of renewable energy including wind, solar, and hydro, to support the country’s vision to lessen its dependence on fossil fuels for its electricity needs.
At present, coal for example, is the single biggest source of power, contributing to almost half of the electricity but the Marcos administration has already made a policy decision and wants the share of renewable energy to reach as high as 50 percent by 2030.
This is an ambitious goal indeed, but EDC is contributing to achieving this vision by also harnessing more geothermal resources. It is looking to add to the grid, for example, 50 megawatts from a Mindanao plant with each megawatt powering some 20,000 households.
Today, EDC has become the undisputed leader in renewable energy production with an installed capacity of 1,476.59 MW, equivalent to some 20 percent of the country’s total installed renewable energy capacity.
With geothermal as its primary energy source, EDC’s 1,181.80 MW accounts for 61.3 percent of the country’s total installed geothermal capacity. Its clean energy energy portfolio also comprises 150 MW of wind, 132.5 MW of hydroelectric, and 11.99 MW of solar energy.
Its integrated geothermal power plants are in Leyte, Bicol, Southern Negros and North Cotabato. It also has 10 wind energy service contracts (SCs) covering areas in Ilocos Norte, Sorsogon, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental; and six solar energy SCs covering areas in Ilocos Norte, Negros Occidental, North Cotabato, and Cebu.
EDC also operates the Masiway and Pantabangan hydroelectric power plants through its 60 percent-owned subsidiary, First Gen Hydro Power Corp. (First Gen HPC). The group also won the bid last year to take over the 165-megawatt Casecnan hydroelectric plant in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija.
In 2020, EDC’s production accounted for some 42 percent of the country’s total generated renewable energy, a testament to its vital role in the Philippines’ ambition to derive more of its energy from clean sources.
EDC, however, has gone far beyond mere power generation and has become a model corporate citizen, an ideal neighbor, and a partner in the communities across the country where it operates.
Its environmental conservation efforts and regeneration strategy, for example, have been institutionalized under Binhi, it’s flagship regreening program that seeks to propagate endangered, indigenous tree species in order to protect and grow water reservoirs that are critical to geothermal energy production.
EDC also launched the KEITECH Educational Foundation Inc. (KEITECH), a pioneering corporate social responsibility (CSR) program in Leyte that is focused on capacitating underserved high school graduates toward becoming highly skilled and employable in high-demand industries such as construction, metals, and engineering, and tourism and hospitality.
The Keitech Educational Foundation was established in 2009 to provide post-secondary technical-vocational training and full scholarships to address unemployment in Kananga and Ormoc.
During times of national crises such as Typhoon Yolanda in 2013 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Tongonan served as a reliable home base for EDC’s community support and disaster relief operations.
All these efforts have indelibly left a positive mark in the lives of EDC’s stakeholders in Leyte and form part of the legacy of the Tongonan geothermal power plant as an inextricable part of daily life in the province.
In January 2023, EDC unveiled its fifth BINHI Vegetative Materials Reproduction (VMR) Nursery in Tongonan, Leyte. The VMR will enable EDC BINHI to provide partners in the region with Philippine native tree species and promote reforestation as a crucial solution to address climate change.
Indeed, as nations and businesses all over the world continue to pivot to a greener future of energy, the Tongonan geothermal power plant solidifies its role in this movement not just as a prized asset of EDC but as an enduring source of pride for the Philippines in the global energy landscape.
As EDC president Jerome H. Cainglet stressed during the 40th anniversary of the first Tongonan plant last year, “It is clear that the Tongonan Geothermal Power Plant is not just a power generation facility. It stands as a symbol of our collective potential to overcome challenges, to innovate, and to create a brighter future for ourselves and generations to come.”
ADVT.
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