Managing green transition is essential for growth of Philippines, business magnate Sabin Aboitiz says

Four decades ago, the company made its first venture into hydroelectric projects. Today, it remains at the forefront of sustainable power generation.

Nevertheless, Sabin Aboitiz, CEO of holding company Aboitiz Equity Ventures, told Global South World that the Philippines remains reliant on fossil fuels to ensure cheap, reliable electricity for its growing population.

“Sustainability is in our DNA. It’s just that it's harder in the Philippines because, you know, we cannot rely on expensive renewable power only because we need it and we still need the old conventional way of doing power,” he said in an exclusive interview from his office in Manila.

“We need to balance our thinking of sustainability and, um something that will not hamper our growth, like higher power rates or no power at all, or no water, right or so, between power and water,” he added.

As an example of achieving this balance, Aboitiz cites his company’s involvement in Apo Agua - a project which combines the needs of power generation with water supply and waste-water management.

Another illustration can be found in the use of coal domes at the Therma Visayas and Therma South power plants. The first in the country to introduce the structures, these plants have been able to dramatically reduce their environmental footprint as a result of trapping coal dust which would otherwise have escaped into the air.

By ensuring the Philippines' energy needs are fulfilled from increasingly diversified and more and more sustainable sources, Aboitiz says he believes his businesses can ensure the Philippines fulfils its potential to become “the next big thing” among Asian economies.