SMC Global Power eyes 31 battery storage facilities

MANILA, Philippines — SMC Global Power Holdings Corp., the power unit of diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), is eyeing to complete 31 battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities by year-end, with more than half of the projects in terms of capacity  slated for completion early this year.

SMC president Ramon Ang said a total of 690 megawatts (MW) of SMC Global’s 1,000-MW BESS facilities nationwide would be operational early 2022.

“By year-end, we will have completed all 31 facilities for a total of 1,000 MW in capacity. This will help balance power throughout the grid and pave the way for a clean energy future,” he said.

It was in 2019 when SMC Global first announced plans to invest in BESS projects to complement its development of renewable energy (RE) projects, as part of growing its portfolio.

The company is investing over $1 billion to simultaneously build 31 BESS facilities nationwide.

Of the total, 18 BESS projects with a combined capacity of 720 MW are in Luzon, eight BESS facilities with a capacity of 190 MW in Visayas, and five with a capacity of 90 MW in Mindanao.

Ang earlier said these projects represent SMC’s full-scale solution to fix power quality issues in the grid.

More significantly, the project will allow for the integration of over 3,000 MW of intermittent renewable power sources to the grid.

SMC Global awarded contracts to Swiss technology provider ABB, Finnish manufacturing company Wärtsilä and US-based energy storage technology and services provider Fluence to complete its massive roll out of BESS projects.

As SMC plans to ramp up its RE and clean power investments, SMC Global is adding more BESS facilities combined with solar farms in 10 locations across the country, which are targeted to start operating in 2023.

Scaling up the group’s RE and cleaner power investments will help in reducing its carbon footprint while helping address the country’s need for reliable and affordable power.