photo from Amber Kinetics
FLYWHEEL energy storage company Amber Kinetics said they are to discuss sites or islands that might have the potential for proof of concept testing of technology this August partnering with the Aboitiz Group.
During the 16th Media Seminar on July 9, Edgar Chua, Amber Kinetics president, said the company sees Mindanao as a possible location for testing and development.
“Mindanao would be good. I think the main requirement really is the place where we can install 2.5 to 5 megawatts of storage capacity and Mindanao ideally is the place where the cost of electricity is high because it becomes a priority. And then we can immediately bring benefits to the community. So cost is high, liability is low, availability of power is low, so those would be the key criteria that we would like to consider,” Chua said.
Chua said after some thorough discussions, the Aboitiz Group would probably decide where the next development will take place.
Amber Kinetics revolutionizes energy storage with its innovative flywheel energy storage system (FESS) technology.
A flywheel is an apparatus that rotates and stores kinetic energy. Throughout the course of its 30-year design life, the flywheel neither emits nor contains any harmful elements. Applications like capacity or demand reduction and supplementary services are appropriate for the modular system.
He said they are about to finish their testing and development of the flywheel at De La Salle University in Manila.
“Technology is really here for micro-grids, as a start, and so we need to identify which islands would be ideal to work with and so in the next few weeks we will be discussing with Aboitiz on how to proceed,” he said.
He said they have also eyed Palawan due to its electricity cost.
“Palawan costs of electricity are very high, and the reliability is not as good. Energy is so important, especially in promoting places as a tourist destination,” Chua said.
“For those living in the cities, some of them just take it for granted but once you go out to the rural areas, power is so important for them, once they have it, they take advantage of it so that their children can study. You realize that if we could have more power available, their status in life could be so much better,” he added.
With 17 years of expertise in the field, the company offers long-duration (4-hr) FESS globally, a flexible alternative to traditional electrochemical battery energy storage with no fire risk and 95% end-of-life recyclability.
To date, the kinetic energy storage company has over 93 flywheel installations worldwide, including Tibet, Japan, the US, Taiwan, Australia, and the Philippines.
