DMCI Holdings Inc. through its subsidiary DMCI Power Corp. will venture into renewable energy (RE) projects, a 12 megawatts (MW) on-shore wind project in Mindoro and a 4 MW solar project in Masbate.
Isidro Consunji, DMCI Holdings president and chief executive officer, told reporters in a media event in Makati City last week the initial 12 MW wind power project will be put up in Semirara Island to provide power supply to the group’s coal mining operations that require at least 35 MW of electricity.
Consunji said the project will likely be completed by the end of the year.
He cited a study which said Semirara Island has a potential to cater to more than 100 MW of wind energy.
Consunji said excluding interconnection costs, the wind energy project will need around $1 million per MW.
Antonino Gatdula Jr., DMCI Power president, said the 4 MW solar project in Masbate is intended to supply electricity to the Masbate Electric Cooperative (Maselco).
Gatdula said the Energy Regulatory Commission requires a few more documents before DMCI Power can file a power supply agreement with Maselco.
At present, all of DMCI Power’s projects utilize thermal technologies. These are the 15 MW circulating fluidized bed coal-fired plant in Mobo, Masbate; a 2×4.95 MW bunker-fired plant in Aborlan, Palawan; the 19.71 MW bunker-fired plant in Calapan city, Oriental Mindoro; as well as a 3 MW diesel plant in Pio V. Corpuz and another 8 MW diesel power plant in Cataingan that are both in Masbate.
Now the biggest off-grid power provider in the country, DMCI Power was established in 2006 to energize small and remote islands in the country that are not connected to the main grid.
Meanwhile, DMCI Power’s affiliate firm, Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) achieved a record-breaking coal sales volume of 15.8 million metric tons (MT) last year, a 6 percent increase from 2022 figures of around 15 million MT.
SMPC said the growth was largely fueled by a 13- percent rise in export sales which surged from 7.1 million MT to 8.1 million MT even if domestic sales stayed flat at 7.7 million MT.
“Our sales performance aligns with our 2023 target of 15 to 16 million MT. It also reflects our team’s relentless effort and commitment to deliver stable fuel supply amidst the challenging dynamics of the global market,” said Maria Cristina Gotianun, SMPC president and chief operating officer, in a statement.
Last year, majority of Semirara coal exports went to China at 65 percent, followed by South Korea with 27 percent and Brunei with 4 percent as all remaining shipments were made to Japan, India and Vietnam.
SMPC said China shipments recovered by 31 percent from 4 million MT to 5.2 million MT on heavy stockpiling, consumption recovery and lower hydropower generation while demand from South Korea was steady year-on-year at 2.2 million MT while Brunei sales nearly tripled from 102,967 MT to 306,800 MT.
