Use of clean coal technology pushed

The World Coal Association is pushing for the use of clean coal technology in Southeast Asia including the Philippines amid an uptrend of demand following the continued economic development in the region.

In particular, the London-based lobby group is promoting high-efficiency, low-emission (Hele) coal technology, which is a feature of many power generation-related project applications that are awaiting action from the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

“The scale of economic development in the region is driving a surge in demand for electricity,” World Coal chief executive Benjamin Sporton said in a statement.

Citing data from the International Energy Agency, Sporton said that over the past 25 years, energy demand in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) region had increased by over 150 percent.

Last September 2017, on the sidelines of the 35th Asean Ministers on Energy Meeting hosted by the Philippines in Manila, the industry association signed with the Asean Centre for Energy a memorandum of understanding that formalized their partnership.

“We need to support the region to use coal in the cleanest way possible,” Sporton said, “This means supporting a transition to (Hele) coal technologies and eventually carbon capture use and storage.”

One of the local companies planning to build “clean coal” power plants is Meralco PowerGen Corp., whose power supply agreements (PSAs)—

which are needed to help secure financing—have been pending at the ERC since April 2016.

According to the parent firm Manila Electric Co., these PSAs “are urgently needed” to ensure adequate, reliable power supply to residential consumers and businesses.