DOE studying policy for the repurposing of diesel-fired power plants

The Department of Energy (DOE)  is currently studying a policy for the repurposing of diesel-fired power plants by integrating biofuel blends of as much as 55% (or B55) by volume.

Energy Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella said they are developing a strategy for B55 to enable the continued operation of diesel power plants.

But Fuentebella also admitted there are major concerns that are still being weighed at this point relative to the said policy proposition.

Among the concerns includes the sustainability of feedstock for the relatively high biodiesel requirement of these generating assets, given the fact that the biodiesel blend for the country’s transport sector will also be increased by this year.

Fuentebella said there is also a need to work collaboratively with power utilities, like the Manila Electric Company (Meralco), as a major off-taker (capacity buyer) of the generated electricity of these plants that will be fed with high biodiesel content.

“We need to talk to Meralco on this because what we’re looking at on the policy side is how to repurpose or transition the diesel plants,” he added.

On  the feedstock availability, Fuentebella  claimed  the sources or raw materials would have to be re-assessed; although he admitted that there are only very few generating assets now that are running on diesel.

If the  propounded policy would  turn out feasible, he  indicated that a candidate  plant for r epurposing could be considered the 150 MW Ingrid diesel plant of ACEN Corporation of the Ayala Group.

Fuentebella said that based on information relayed to DOE, the Ayala-operated plant  “can prospectively run on 100% biodiesel, so we’re looking at that”.

On the sphere of carbon intensity across power generation technologies, diesel plants are generally [received as a ‘ticking time bomb’ that could aggravate humanity’s dilemma with global warming risks.

In the case of the Philippines — primarily in off-grid sites, total decommissioning of diesel-fired generation cannot be done easily because these facilities still serve as a major source of electricity service for consumers in these areas.

There is a pitch for a seismic shift to renewable energy (RE) installations in these off-grid domains, but the intermittency of solar and wind technologies in particular, would still not make these alternatives an all-inclusive solution at this point.