EDC, First Gen to provide Gaisano with solar rooftop panels

EDC, First Gen to provide Gaisano with solar rooftop panels

The Energy Development Corporation (EDC) and First Gen Energy Solutions Inc. (FGES) signed an agreement to provide Gaisano Capital with low carbon and environment-friendly energy projects.

The firms signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to install 3, 400 solar panels on the rooftop of the retailer in Iloilo in La Paz, amounting to 975-kilowatt hour (kW).

This will be able to provide up to 50 percent of the mall’s daytime load. As a result, the Gaisano Capital can avoid as much as 750 metric tons of emissions per year.

The Lopez Group is venturing into solar rooftop developments, installing its first project with giant retailer Gaisano Capital.

“We have been interested in solar panels for some time now.  We always look for ways to make our operations more environmentally responsible and serve our customers better,” Gaisano Capital vice president for Operations Edmund Gaisano Jr. said.

EDC president and COO Richard Tantoco said the company is in talks with potential customers for their solar rooftop business.

“At the rate climate change is affecting the most vulnerable countries including the Philippines, we should be shifting to cleaner and more efficient technologies that manage environmental, health and social impacts better. That is why we made a commitment to remain a 100 percent renewable energy company and not to build or invest in coal plants,” EDC president and COO Richard Tantoco said.

EDC is in support of the Philippines’ commitment to reducing carbon emissions by 70 percent. Their clean energy portfolio currently includes 1, 169 megawatts (MW) of geothermal, 150 MW of wind, 132 MW of hydro, and 7 MW of solar. The Gaisano project is its latest addition.