ACEN switches on 40MW hybrid energy storage project in Laguna – EQ Mag Pro
Ayala-led energy firm ACEN Corporation has switched on its 40-megawatt Alaminos hybrid energy storage facility in Laguna, positioned as a support technology for its solar-generated power capacity that will be delivered to off-takers.
The facility is touted as the first hybrid solar and energy storage venture to have reached completion and commercial operations in the country, hence, the listed energy investment platform of the Ayala group, will considerably be trailblazing such terrain of renewable energy (RE) project development in the country.
“We are taking advantage of battery storage technology’s fast response, scalability and ease of integration into our renewable projects,” said Jose Maria Zabaleta, chief development officer of ACEN.
By having battery energy storage as a technology coupling to solar in the Alaminos project, he noted that “we can harness renewable energy more effectively amidst its variability while improving the operating capabilities of the grid and ensuring high reliability.”
Following the initial project’s completion, ACEN President and Chief Executive Officer Eric T. Francia highlighted that the company “will be looking to increase our investments in storage as the technology increases its viability and competitiveness.”
That pilot energy storage installation in Alaminos, according to the Ayala firm, “will allow the company to evaluate opportunities to store energy more effectively across ACEN’s portfolio, with the aim to provide a sustainable and reliable energy source for the country.”
The energy storage facility, which is of 2x20MW configuration, is sited proximate to the existing 120MW Alaminos solar farm facility of the Ayala group.
By far, that project is anchored on the need “to help manage internal electricity demands, store electricity when the solar plant is generating power but demand is low, and provide rapid power charging when the demand is high. It will also provide ancillary services to the national grid.”
As designed, the energy storage facility is equipped with 24 battery containers that are of the SAFT 2.5-megawatt hour (MWh) lithium-ion batteries type.
On the estimate of ACEN, that will be enough to meet the electricity demand of about 20,000 homes and could avoid 35.87 metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions per year.
The strategic focus of ACEN on investments primarily leaning on renewable energy and clean energy technologies, like battery storage, is part of the all-inclusive goal of the Ayala group to “create awareness on various climate action programs such as nature-based solutions which are essential for the protection and restoration of natural ecosystems.”
The Ayala energy firm is targeting RE-anchored capacity buildup of up to 5,000 megawatts by year 2025 – and it’s a project development game plan that will be geographically spread – not just in the Philippines but across various Asian markets.
Source: mb
