Completion of 40-MW biomass facility seen by 2017

MANILA, Philippines - The 40-megawatt biomass facility of Global Business Power Corp. (GBPC) and sugar miller Roxas Holdings Inc. (RHI) is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2017 under the feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme.

GBPC executive vice president Jaime Azurin said the development of the biomass bagasse plant is already in the final stages.

“We have already hired our foreign consultant to finalize the design that will be bidded out by December to EPC (engingeering, procurement and construction) contractors,” he said.

The company official revealed the joint venture firm has already shortlisted contractors to a group of Japanese, French and European technology providers.

“By end of this year, we will be able to come up with our formal entry into renewables,” he said.

The biomass plant, which will be located in the premises of RHI’s Central Azucarera de la Carlota Inc., is being designed by Finnish consulting and engineering firm Pöyry Energy Inc.

Azurin noted the front-end engineering design (FEED) will be the basis of the structure of ownership between GBPC and RHI.

Part of the study will also determine the type of fuel that is most feasible for the co-generation facility.

Azurin explained the biomass plant can only operate during the sugar milling season, which lasts seven months in a year, and therefore needs an alternative to have it operate for a full year.

“Our plan is to mix it with some other fuel but if you start mixing other (feedstock), the technology of the boiler becomes more expensive,” he said.

“That is also being studied, how much more types of biomass can we bring in that will be put in the design,” he added.

The GBPC official said the power facility is expected to be operational by September 2017 and its output will be sold through the grid to be under the FIT scheme.

“We’re sure that we will be one of the first to be able to touch the biomass 250 MW FIT allocation by September of 2017,” Azurin said.

FIT is a set of incentives given to power developers to invest in the renewable energy sector.

For biomass, the Department of Energy (DOE) has put in place an allocation target of 250 MW and a FIT rate of P6.63 per kilowatt hour (kwh).