AYALA-LED AC Energy Corp. (ACEN) on Monday said it had energized two units of 20-megawatt (MW) battery energy storage system (BESS) in Alaminos, Laguna.
“The pilot 40-MW energy storage will allow the company to evaluate opportunities to store energy more effectively across [its] portfolio, with the aim to provide a sustainable and reliable energy source for the country,” ACEN said in a media release.
The energy storage project was built adjacent to ACEN’s 120-MW Alaminos solar farm to help store unused electricity from the solar project and to provide fast power charging when electricity demand is high.
The facility houses 24 battery containers with 2.5 megawatt-hour (MWh) Saft lithium-ion batteries, enough to power about 20,000 homes and avoid 35.87 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, the company said.
It also has a sustainability hub, which is surrounded by Ayala Land’s carbon forest that traps carbon and a plastic recycling amenity that turns plastic waste into eco-bricks.
“With the Alaminos Energy Storage project, we can harness renewable energy more effectively amidst its variability while improving the operating capabilities of the grid and ensuring high reliability,” ACEN Chief Development Officer Jose Maria P. Zabaleta said.
ACEN President and CEO Eric T. Francia said the company would invest more in storage as the technology increases the viability and competitiveness of the BESS.
The newly powered BESS, which is said to be the country’s first hybrid solar and energy storage project, will also provide ancillary services to the national grid.
The company said the Alaminos energy storage is vital for the company to achieve two goals by 2050: reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emission and becoming the biggest listed energy platform in Southeast Asia by installing 5,000 MW of renewable energy capacity.
On Monday, ACEN shares slipped 26 centavos or 2.94% to close at P8.59 apiece. — Marielle C. Lucenio