Coal plant to make Davao ‘most competitive city’

WEDNESDAY, 02 MARCH 2011 19:47 BONG D. FABE / CORRESPONDENT

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The 300-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant proposed to be located in Davao City will make the “Silicon Gulf City” the most competitive city in Mindanao, “even perhaps the Philippines,” said the president and chief executive officer of the project proponent Aboitiz Power Corp. (APC).

“It surely will be the largest investment ever made in Davao City or this region of Mindanao. The benefits of this clean coal-power project can make Davao the most competitive city in Mindanao, perhaps even the  Philippines,” said Erramon I. Aboitiz in a statement.

APC’s first vice president for Mindanao affairs Manuel “Bobby” Orig said that its proposed coal-fired power plant will propel Davao to new economic heights.

“Our project will not bring destruction but net advantages to propel Davao to new economic heights by providing affordable and reliable power with the best technology aimed at ensuring that its meet stringent international and the Philippines’ health, safety and environmental protection standards,” he said in an electronic mail to the BusinessMirror.

APC is the country’s biggest generator of renewable-energy resources. It operates the Ambuklao, Binga and Magat hydroelectric plants as well as the Tiwi and Makban geothermal power plant complexes.

Aboitiz also promised the local government unit of Davao City that the company that bears his family’s name “will do its utmost to strictly comply with environmental laws and regulatory requirements and accepted international standards, as well as implement preventive measures beyond what are required as part of our commitment to the protection of the environment and  residents. We take pride in responsible and sustainable development.”

APC has proposed to build the P25 billion, 300-MW coal-fired plant in barangay Binugao, Toril District to help mitigate the impending power crisis in Mindanao. It plans to complete construction of the plant by mid 2014.

Recent projection showed that the power-supply shortfall in Mindanao will reach 484 MW by 2014.

The plant will use an environmental-friendly circulating fluidized bed combustion technology to reduce the generation of sulfur and nitrogen oxides within the furnace during the combustion process, Aboitiz said.

However, 350.org campaigner Vince A. Cinches said that coal is the single biggest source of greenhouse gases that cause climate change. 350.org is an international campaign that’s building a movement to unite the world around solutions to the climate crisis, solutions that science and justice demand.       

“Davaoeños should stop dirty, unsustainable and polluting sources of energy. Coal is not the only option in addressing the needs for increasing energy demand. Coal is actually more expensive because it destroys our environment, affecting health of the communities, and threatening our food security,” he said in a statement.

Cinches, executive director of the Central Visayas Fisheries Development Center Inc. (Fidec) and one of the conveners of the Visayas Climate Action Now Network!, said: “Our country is beset with so many climate impacts imaginable, and we have government institutions pushing for more coal-fired power plants, mining, and off-shore mining. Right now, we need more credible and cohesive actions.”

APC’s Orig, however, said that those who opposed the project simply because it uses coal is using obsolete and incomplete data on coal-fired power plants.

“Obsolete because most of these data are from power the United States, which up to the present, are operating old coal-fired power plants built as early as 1938. Incomplete because none of these ‘studies’ included new-generation power plants now operating in the Philippines and of which we plan to build a newer, better version in Davao City.