First Balfour has signed a deal to build the battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities of Energy Development Corporation (EDC).

The company will build three facilities with a total combined capacity of 40 megawatts at EDC’s geothermal plants in Sorsogon, Leyte and Negros Oriental. It will undertake engineering, procurement and construction works for the balance of plant and connection assets of the BESS facilities.

US-based Fluence, which provides energy storage products and services and optimization software for renewables and storage, will supply the BESS.

First Balfour head of estimating Raymond Orbase said: “As this is not the kind of project we typically bid for, the whole team had been very hands-on from conceptualization until contract closing. It was a new experience that I believe added to the competencies of our tender team.”

According to Ana Valeriano, First Balfour business development lead for BESS, the collaboration between the business development and estimating teams and the support departments was key to bagging the company’s first BESS project.

“I would like to recognize the hard work of all the members of our tender teams who, since November last year, have been diligently working and meeting tight deadlines to secure this contract,” she said.

EDC will use the BESS facilities to store excess power from its geothermal plants, which it will then deploy whenever and wherever it is needed.

(Story/Photos by: Frances Ariola)