Ambuklao, Binga hydropower plants accredited

MANILA, Philippines - SN Aboitiz Power-Benguet (SNAP-Benguet), a unit of the Aboitiz Group, said its Ambuklao and Binga hydroelectric power plants have been registered as Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

SNAP-Benguet president and chief executive officer Emmanuel V. Rubio said the accreditation means SNAP-Benguet met the criteria for sustainable development under the CDM process. 

 “This is part of our contribution to the international response to climate change and to promote hydroelectric power projects as a major source of renewable energy for the country,” Rubio said.

The Ambuklao and Binga hydropower plants will together produce an average of 180,000 carbon emission reduction credits (CERs) per year, equivalent to the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by about 80,000 cars.

CDM is a mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol allowing industrialized countries committed to greenhouse gas reduction to invest in climate-friendly ventures in developing countries.

This mechanism allows emission-reduction projects in developing countries to earn CER credits, each equivalent to one ton of CO2.

Built in 1956, Ambuklao in Bokod, Benguet was the first among the country’s largest hydroelectric power plants with an original installed capacity of 75 megawatts (MW). But siltation and other technical problems caused by the 1990 earthquake that struck Benguet led to suspension of operations in 1999.

Following the plant’s privatization in 2008, SNAP-Benguet began Ambuklao’s rehabilitation to restore the plant and increase its capacity to 105 MW.

Just last month, one of the plant’s three turbine units went online to enable a fully operational Ambuklao plant by the end of the year.

SNAP-Benguet’s renovation on its other facility, the Binga power plant in neighboring Itogon, is also ongoing. Began in 2010, the refurbishment will upgrade the plant from 100 MW to 120 MW one unit at a time within three years.

 “We are very pleased with the CDM registration of Ambuklao and Binga and these registrations recognize our effort in the reduction of greenhouse gases and positions SN Power as a clean, sustainable and renewable energy company,” lsbeth Tronstad, SNAP-Benguet executive vice president, for CSR and communication.