Geothermal Energy in the Philippines
Tongonan geothermal field is recognized as largest wet-stream geothermal field in the world - Courtesy EDC
The Philippines has the 3rd largest installed geothermal capacity in the world behind Indonesia and the United States. It is part of the so-called One GW Club, which also includes New Zealand and Turkey. At least 45% of its renewable electricity comes from geothermal resources with the rest from conventional hydro, biomass, solar and wind.
According to Ray Alvarado PE, a Surface Consultant for geothermal power generation -the situation for geothermal energy in the Philippines is different than in Hawaii.
“Firstly, the Hawaiian islands ("Hot Spot" type heat source) and the Philippine islands (edge-of-tectonic-plate Subduction Zone heat source) are in a completely different lithology and volcanism. Current geothermal technology does not target magma and drill through volcanoes, thus cause it to erupt or emit poisonous gases. (In Hawaii) we look for shallower hydrothermal aquifers nearby, even the existing “Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV)” wells.”
In the Philippines mile long drills go directly not into lava but into pools of extremely hot water. (480-660 Fahrenheit) When the pools are struck by the drill holes the hot water gushes upward and expands into hot steam. It is then used to heat a special fluid inside steel pipes. The fluid turns into a gas then cools and spins a turbine - creating - what the New York Times said was five times as much energy as the island of Leyte with its 1.5 million people could consume. The extra electricity is sent via under sea cable to then power other islands.
The undersea cables that take power from Northern Leyte to power homes and businesses on other islands.
According to Alvarado modern ORC geothermal operations do not purposely release any gas to atmosphere. Large vapor plumes coming off the geothermal plant cooling towers are mistakenly thought of as toxic gases; they are in actuality clean-water condensation.
What is most extraordinary about the Philippine geothermal story is that the power generated in Leyte Island, 1st ever and largest geothermal development by Energy Development Corporation (EDC), is shared via several high-voltage submarine cables interconnecting the northern region Luzon Island grid and the central region Cebu Island grid. Other major islands are also linked by submarine cables e.g. Bohol, Negros, Panay, and the southern region Mindanao grid.
Leyte and Cebu islands are part of the Visayan central region. In the United States, Leyte is best known for the famous Battle of Leyte Gulf. From its 5 main power plants and 5 topping/bottoming optimization stations, the greater Leyte Geothermal Production Field (LGPF) can produce 711 MW of green electricity – enough to power nearly 500,000 homes in the country. This would be enough to power 90% of the homes in Hawaii
How the project began
In 1973, in response to the Arab Oil Embargo, which caused oil shortages throughout the world, President Ferdinand E. Marcos began a small 3 MW pilot project to reduce fossil fuel imports. The site chosen, the Tongonan geothermal field was in a remote undeveloped area in Northern Leyte and close to the small town of Ormoc. Today, the Tongonan geothermal field is recognized as the largest wet-steam geothermal field in the world.
The political and economic sensitivities of drilling.
With his lengthy experience in geothermal projects - Alvarado says that the risks of geothermal are not significantly different from oil well drilling.
“ I think drilling itself is not the problem. It's the hefty drilling cost incurred after an inaccurate geoscientific plan. We have the brightest minds in the industry, the most complex of numerical software, and the most colorful of 3D models - but all on paper. It still needs to be actualized in hard rock and cold steel to find that elusive subterranean heat. Well placement and Target Depth (TD) are determined by the geoscience team (e.g. Geologists, Geophysicists, Geochemists, and Reservoir Engineers). The Drilling Engineer will only design the wellbore and where hole was determined to end (the TD) in three-dimensional space. Oil-and-gas has drilling risks too but not as tricky. In geothermal drilling, you can have a really bad well (e.g. highly acidic) next a proven good producer well. There are may ways to control a highly-corrosive well e.g. by chemical dosing, by specifying special alloy steel, by well Cathodic Protection (a separate topic by itself), etc. Of course, there is no such thing as a CORROSION-PROOF metal, only CORROSION-RESISTANT. Economics plays a big part in such project decisions to go or no-go. “
Alvarado said that disagreements over geothermal use in Hawaii are not unique. They are common wherever geothermal is being developed
“ If you look at leading geothermal producers worldwide say Iceland/New Zealand/Indonesia/Japan/Kenya including the U.S., that percentage is also low because of unique challenges in its locale. Geothermal development in Iceland competes directly with its cheaper conventional hydro, New Zealand has unresolved Maori land-use claims, Indonesia has way cheaper oil-and-gas production, Japan faces strong opposition from its age-old Onsen bathing rituals, and Kenya has on-going Masai tribal issues”
Working with Indigenous Peoples.
“Every geothermal lease area anywhere in the world, will have its own unique challenges. Mount Apo, in the Philippines, is a dormant volcano and sacred and highly revered by an indigenous tribe (or tribes) that has lived in its slopes since ancient times. It would have similarities to Polynesian long-held beliefs around Kilauea and the other shield volcanoes. This tribe owns the land around the volcano, a government-declared autonomous ancestral area, which directly overlaps EDC's 100 MW Mount Apo Geothermal Production Field. The tribe/s and EDC have always signed Land Access Agreements since its 1st exploration decades ago, Contracts renewed a few times, but interspersed by protests and disagreements every now and then. The royalty amount paid by EDC may be one of the main sticking points. But at the same time, involved parties have always come back to the negotiating table which are hard-fought (government agencies would always mediate). On top of that, this geothermal rainforest site is also home to the critically-endangered national bird, the Philippine Eagle. In order for the companies to drill wells into the earth, they had to negotiate access rights and royalties with the local community and utility companies.
The big advantage for the Philippines is that they have reduced their economic demand for imported fossil fuels, they have cleaned their air and made energy cheaper and more reliable.
Please join us with Engineer Ray Alvarado and our invited resource person from EDC to discuss geothermal energy in the Philippines on February 6 at 3 pm (Friday at 9 am in the Philppines. Stan Osserman from RRH will be moderating.
