With the world’s growing concern for climate change and the need for environmental sustainability, there is a strong focus on reducing our carbon emissions and living through cleaner and greener daily routines. Our individual lifestyle changes however can only go so far.
The country, and the world, is in need of industry leaders who are able to take a stand for the future of our planet, being a harbinger for both clean and responsible practices.
Power provider Aboitiz Power Corp. aims to take on this role, having intensified its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards and practices as it continues to meet challenges along the way.
Emmanuel V. Rubio, AboitizPower president and chief executive officer, said that the group has been committed to ensuring that these standards are raised to levels necessary for sustainability.
“Over the years, our balanced mix strategy has enabled us to provide the country with dependable cost-efficient power supply, while keeping our environmental impact at a minimum and creating long-term societal benefits for the community we serve,” said Rubio.
The group has started reporting about its sustainability initiatives since 2009 and that it has continued to implement its corporate governance and sustainability initiatives through engagements with its members and other stakeholders.
EFFICIENT SYSTEM, HELPING THE COMMUNITIES
The group also upholds a ‘high performance’ management system policy to ensure that it complies both with its obligations as well as its commitments to all its stakeholders.
Because of its commitment to ensuring that this policy is adhered to, it reviews this policy periodically and makes sure that it is communicated to its subsidiaries and other stakeholders that need to abide by it.
Another major commitment that it has is its philosophy of sharing its wealth with the society, a pledge that it has upheld since its inception about a century ago when it was just thriving in Leyte.
AboitizPower continues to initiate corporate social responsibility programs, showing its commitment not only to the communities that host its subsidiaries but also to vulnerable groups that need hands to wade through challenges.
Aside from various community outreach programs, the company’s generation units also participate in the ER 1-94 program, which allows host communities to receive shares from the power generated in their area. The funds that they receive are then used for collaborative projects between the LGU and the AboitizPower subsidiaries.
BALANCED MIX
Among other initiatives, the group has launched the `#PositiveEnergy’ campaign this year to promote the activities that the employees engage in, keeping the lights on and putting a smile on the face of the members of their communities.
Among the initiatives is that the group has continued to grow its Cleanergy brand, or the renewable energy sources like hydroelectric, geothermal and solar power sources.
Today, Aboitiz Power Corp. is one of the nation’s leaders in generating power from these forms of energy sources, and the group plans to continue growing this portfolio. Based on its 10-year strategy, the target is that between 2020 until 2030, 65% of the new capacity will be under the Cleanergy brand.
The brand will also help the group comply with its commitment to the Manila Declaration and the Water Alliance, which it signed in 2015, as these initiatives seek to lower carbon emissions of pollutants and help address climate change.
To showcase its practices, particularly to the youth, the group has established the Cleanergy Center, its first educational facility at the compound of the MakBan Geothermal Power Plant in Brgy. Bitin, Bay, Laguna. The center highlights the use of renewable energy through the use of audio visual presentations, interactive displays, and a tour of a working geothermal power plant.
Another similar facility is the Energy Education Center, which is located in the compound of the Therma South Inc. power plant located at the boundary of Davao City and Davao del Sur. This center showcases the intricacies of running a power generating facility.
EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT
The group has also pushed for the continuing development of its employees as well as ensuring that the risks that they are facing are minimized or completely eliminated.
It has delivered on its “social commitment by providing venues for employee development, minimizing occupational health and safety risks, eliminating hazards to ensure a safe and healthy work environment, and nurturing relationships with stakeholders.”
Among the steps that it has taken included the implementation of “prevailing influence” which requires employees to adhere to occupational and health and safety standards based on the guidelines that the group has set for its employees. The standards also cover the employees of its contractors.
As part of complying with these standards, employees undergo an eight-hour occupational safety and health training as the group has been certified as ISO 45001 Occupational Health & Safety and ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems.
For AboitizPower, sustainability is not merely a lip service, but an actionable initiative that it has come to embrace. As the planet eyes hopefully on a more sustainable and responsible future, this power provider makes it their top priority.
