Aboitiz battery storage addresses back-up need

The Luzon grid’s ancillary services, or power reserves, received a much-needed boost after the 24-megawatt, or MW, Magat BESS project started its commercial operations along with the reserve market kickoff.

A BESS, or battery energy storage system, utilizes a set of batteries to store electrical energy when there is a supply surplus in the grid and releases when customers need additional power supply.

The project, undertaken by SN Aboitiz Power, or SNAP, a joint venture of Scatec and Aboitiz Power Corp., secured its Provisional Authority to Operate from the Energy Regulatory Commission on 17 January.

Initiated in April 2022, the project achieved a construction milestone in July 2023, catering to ancillary services in the Luzon grid. Subsequently, commercial operations commenced on 26 January in the reserve market.

The Magat BESS utilizes liquid-cooled lithium-ion batteries and is connected to the grid via a 230-kV power transformer. It is co-located with SNAP’s Magat hydroelectric power plant in Ramon, Isabela.

AboitizPower president and CEO Manny Rubio had indicated that the company will leverage battery technology as an opportunity to address “concerns about the reliability, affordability and sustainability of energy supply.”

Grid stability backs growth

“We respond to the needs of our customers and communities while supporting economic growth by ensuring the stability of the Grid,” he said.

AboitizPower started the operation of its first BESS venture, through the 49-MW BESS in Maco, Davao de Oro, in November 2022. The first of its kind in Southeast Asia, the project helps strengthen the Mindanao grid.  

Aside from Magat BESS, SNAP also owns and operates the 112.5-MW Ambuklao and 140-MW Binga hydroelectric power plants in Benguet.

Its Magat hydroelectric power plant, on the other hand, has a nameplate capacity of 360 MW and a maximum capacity of 388 MW on the border of Isabela and Ifugao, while its Maris hydro project, also in Isabela, has 8.5 MW.

According to SNAP, the non-power components such as dams, reservoirs, and spillways are owned, managed, and operated by the government.

Meanwhile, its partner Scatec, is a Norway-based renewable energy solutions provider, accelerating access to reliable and affordable clean energy in emerging markets like the Philippines.