First Gen powers partners with clean energy

As the country makes its push toward decarbonization, more companies and institutions joined forces with First Gen Corporation to power their operations with renewable energy (RE).

These fresh collaborations underscore how industries are embedding sustainability into their core strategies, cutting carbon footprints while ensuring reliable electricity for the future.

First Gen’s newest partners include Wilmar Edible Oils Philippines Inc., Lyceum of the Philippines University (LPU), Eastern Communications Philippines Inc., Pro-Excel Property Managers Inc., Southville Global Education Network (SGEN), Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC) and Mount Grace Hospitals Inc. Wilmar is the Philippine unit of agribusiness group Wilmar International Limited.

Its 24/7 processing facility in Gingoog, Misamis Oriental, which includes copra crushing, processing and refining of edible oils, is now powered with geothermal energy sourced from the Mt. Apo geothermal plant in Cotabato.

“Our partnership with First Gen reinforces our commitment to responsible operations, climate action while ensuring reliable power supply to support our operations.

Since energy is typically one of the major sources of operational emissions, shifting to RE offers a practical, measurable way to reduce environmental impact while supporting long-term business continuity and cost stability,” said David Lim, Wilmar chief financial officer.

“Geothermal power is the only RE source that has baseload capability which can support the electricity demand of industries, while ensuring a reduction in its carbon footprint.

We remain committed to supporting Wilmar as it continues to embed sustainability across its operations in the Philippines,” said Carlo Vega, chief customer engagement officer of First Gen.

By aggregating their electricity consumption and getting direct supply of RE, another new partner, LPU, aims to rationalize power costs and reduce the energy intensity at its key South Luzon campuses.

LPU is pooling over 1,150 kilowatts (kW) of electricity usage of the LPU Laguna and Batangas campuses and transitioning to using geothermal energy sourced by First Gen from its unified generating plants in Tongonan, Ormoc City, and Kananga, Leyte (Unified Leyte).

LPU Batangas and Laguna have already shifted to geothermal power, while the pooling of the electricity consumption of these campuses—enabled by government’s Retail Aggregation Program (RAP)—took effect in February.

Under RAP, power consumers with at least 500 kW of pooled energy demand within a contiguous area or the same owners, or under the same business category, can directly choose and negotiate with an electricity supplier.

By June 26, 2026, the RAP threshold will come down from 500 kW to 100 kW per month, enabling more consumers to participate.

“Over the years we have learned a lot from the Lopez Group and this partnership will not just help us make our campuses greener but also help us attain cost-efficiency on power.

We are optimistic that our partnership with First Gen will open more opportunities for us to utilize more renewable energy and become more energy efficient,” said Dr. Peter Laurel, president of LPU.

Future-proofed facilities First Gen’s tie-up with Eastern Communications marks a significant milestone in the telecommunications company’s initiatives to enhance operational resiliency and future-proof its facilities.

The agreement entails supply to the telco of 1,300 kW of geothermal energy sourced from the Unified Leyte generating plants.

“Eastern Communications understands that embracing sustainability is about honoring our natural resources and contributing to a circular economy, which is why we are transitioning towards renewable energy.

The company aims to do its part in decreasing the country’s overall carbon footprint and we are thrilled to do this together with a trusted partner like First Gen,” Atty. Aileen Regio and Jaeson Evangelista, co-coordinators of Eastern Communications, said in a joint statement.

“Information and communication technology services need support systems that are stable and reliable. With geothermal energy, Eastern Communications will be able to power its operations with a much lower carbon intensity.

It is our privilege to partner with them to achieve their sustainability objectives,” said Arlene Sy-Soriano, First Gen head of sales and engagement.

The linkup is enabled by the government’s Retail Competition and Open Access (RCOA) program, which allows large-demand electricity consumers to directly contract with power suppliers.

Eastern Communications, the country’s first telco company, is aiming to significantly expand its network and portfolio of services to sustain its steady growth.

Power for key properties
First Gen, Pro-Excel, Parkway Corporate Center Condominium Corporation and Bristol Tower Condominium Corporation signed a supply agreement for the direct supply of 1,100 kW of geothermal energy to power all common areas of Parkway Corporate Center and Bristol at Parkway Place, which are managed by Pro-Excel.

First Gen will source the geothermal power from the Bacon-Manito generating facilities.

“We are pleased to partner with First Gen to power two of our key properties with geothermal energy.

This steady renewable supply strengthens our long-term energy strategy, supports more efficient cost management and reinforces our commitment to sustainable building operations,” said Michelle Lazatin, board president of Parkway Corporate Center Condominium Corporation and Bristol Tower Condominium Corporation.

The 38-storey Bristol Tower is a premium residential development by Filigree, a high-end residential developer known for refined urban residences.

Parkway Corporate Center is a 32-storey building with v4 Core and Shell rating—the first office building project in the Philippines to have the latest version of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

“With more geothermal capacity in the market, more and more of the LEED or green buildings will be able to shift to 24/7 renewable energy which can support increasing demand while ensuring as minimal a carbon footprint as possible,” said First Gen’s Soriano.

“We encourage more properties to explore programs that will enable them to optimize and even aggregate power usage.”

Pooled electricity demand SGEN, a consortium of schools from early childhood learning to postgraduate study, completed aggregation of the power demand of its schools and has transitioned to direct RE supply.

SGEN, composed of Southville International School and Colleges, Southville International School Affiliated with Foreign Universities, Asian SEED Academy of Technology, South Mansfield College, Southville International Institute of Medical Health Sciences, Stonyhurst Southville International School (Batangas campus) and Southville Monarchs International School, pooled over 1,800 kW of electricity demand and contracted directly with First Gen for direct power supply. First Gen will source the electricity from Unified Leyte.

“Our partnership with First Gen aligns with our mission of environmental stewardship, climate action and future-ready education, ensuring that campus growth does not come at the expense of planetary well-being.

Our transition to renewable energy will not only provide cleaner, more reliable power for campus operations, but also help ensure more strategic, long-term and cost-efficient power procurement,” said Dr. Genevieve Ledesma-Laurel, Southville founder and chief executive mentor.

Eight shopping malls RLC’s alliance with First Gen will power its key shopping malls in the Visayas and Mindanao, as well as those of its subsidiary RL Commercial REIT (RCR) and affiliate Robinsons Supermarket Corporation (RSC).

Covered by the agreement are RLC’s shopping malls Robinsons Galleria Cebu, Robinsons Fuente Cebu, Robinsons Antique, Robinsons Roxas, Robinsons North Tacloban and Robinsons Pagadian; RCR’s Robinsons Ormoc and Robinsons Tacloban; and RSC’s Shopwise in San Nicolas, Cebu City.

The agreement with First Gen calls for over 22 MW of geothermal energy supply for the eight shopping malls and a supermarket in five provinces. First Gen will source the power from Unified Leyte for the shopping malls in the Visayas and from the Mt. Apo geothermal plant for RLC’s Mindanao mall.

“Consistent with the net zero goal of the Gokongwei Group by 2050, we at Robinsons Land are committed to keeping our carbon footprint as low as possible and ensuring sustainability through strong environmental performance and energy efficiency. Through this partnership with First Gen, RLC will be able to power its shopping malls with renewable geothermal energy even as our power needs peak.

This also helps reduce our exposure to electricity price volatility driven by global fuel markets, which is particularly important amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainties,” said Mybelle Aragon-GoBio, president and CEO of RLC.

“We are pleased to rekindle our partnership with Robinsons Land and help them achieve their goal of increasing the share of renewable energy in their total power consumption.

Geothermal energy is not just renewable, it’s also indigenous and the only clean energy source that can run baseload capacity.

It offers not just electricity cost optimization, but also price predictability.

We look forward to supporting RLC as they continue to grow their portfolio with sustainability at the core of their expansion,” said First Gen president Giles Puno.

From Pantabangan, Casecnan
MGHI, one of the country’s largest hospital networks and a member of the United Laboratories Group, shifted the power needs of 13 of its partner-hospitals to RE after reaching agreements with First Gen.

Ten MGHI partner-hospitals now get 4.5 MW of electricity supply from RE after MGHI forged a power supply deal with First Gen under the auspices of the RAP.

These are Divine Grace Medical Center in General Trias, Cavite; Capitol Medical Center and the Fe del Mundo Medical Center in Quezon City; Grace Medical Center in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan; Healthserv Los Baños Medical Center and Westlake Medical Center in San Pedro, Laguna; Medical Center Manila; Medical Center Parañaque; Tagaytay Medical Center; and The Doctors’ Hospital in Bacolod City.

Two other MGHI hospitals—Gatchalian Medical Center in Ormoc, Leyte, and the Madonna and Child Medical Center in Cagayan de Oro City—have successfully shifted their supply requirements to RE, estimated at 600 kW, by reaching a separate supply agreements with First Gen under the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP).

GEOP gives electricity end-users with average peak demand of at least 100 kW over the last 12 months the option to contract directly with an RE provider.

Meanwhile, Ciudad Medical Zamboanga signed a separate agreement for its own 700 kW supply of electricity from First Gen under the RCOA program.

The 13 MGHI hospitals are on top of three other medical facilities—Mary Mediatrix Medical Center in Lipa in Batangas, VRP Medical Center in Mandaluyong and Divine Mercy Wellness & Medical Center in Tuguegarao in Cagayan—which reached earlier power supply deals with First Gen.

First Gen sources the electricity supply for the MGHI partner-hospitals from the Pantabangan-Masiway and Casecnan hydroelectric power plant complexes in Nueva Ecija and the geothermal power facilities in Leyte and Cotabato.

“What this partnership demonstrates is the power of the Mount Grace network in working together to achieve common benefit and goals which will not only improve the efficiency of each hospital but also generate monthly savings on our electricity costs.

More importantly, our use of renewable energy reiterates our commitment towards environmental stewardship and community well-being,” said Divine Grace Medical Center president Dr. Leonard Lao on behalf of MGHI.

“Even as we transition to renewable energy, it is critical that health care and medical facilities continue to have stable and steady power sources.

We are privileged to support the shift to cleaner energy of one of the biggest hospital groups in the country and are committed to supporting Mount Grace Hospitals in its decarbonization initiatives,” said Vega.

More than reducing carbon footprints, these alliances with First Gen provide resilience against the current energy crisis.

With over 1,700 MW of renewable capacity and a plan to expand to 13 gigawatts in the next five years, First Gen looks to become a vital force in ensuring that push toward decarbonization remains reliable and future-ready.

 

Story By: Joel Gaborni