Quezon

Operations

Quezon Power is comprised of a 460 MW coal-fired electric generating facility and a 31-kilometer transmission line in Mauban, Philippines. The plant commenced commercial operations in May of 2000 and provides stable and reliable electricity to the Luzon grid under a 25-year power sales agreement with the Manila Electric Company (Meralco). Quezon was built to help address a major power crisis that hit the Philippines in the late 1990s, and was the first private sector generation facility in the Philippines to sell power to a privately owned utility. The coal facility supports national energy planning efforts by diversifying the country's fuel mix, expanding electric services to developing areas and stabilizing the electricity distribution system.

In September of 2006, Quezon Power took top honors as the Best Operations & Maintenance Plant in Asia during the Asian Power Awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The awards program, organized by Asian Power Magazine, is the only one of its kind in Asia that recognizes the achievements and contributions of outstanding companies across the power industry.

Performance

Quezon is one of the most modern and efficient power generators in the Philippines, with average efficiency levels of 90%.

Safety

Safety is of foremost importance at Quezon Power. Recently, Quezon achieved the safety milestone of 4 million safe man-hours without a single lost time incident. The plant uses the DuPont Safety Training Observation Program (STOP), a behavior-based program which teaches employees various techniques to achieve plant safety.

Environmental

Quezon Power’s environmental technologies incorporate low NOx burners and electrostatic precipitators to reduce emissions. Quezon is also equipped with a Continued Emissions Monitoring System, and counts among its staff the only U.S.-certified stack smoke reader in the Philippines.

To uphold its commitment to sustainability and environmental protection, Quezon Power has embarked on an intensive environmental monitoring program. The program is an important part of the plant’s compliance with the requirements of its Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) which was issued in 1996. The program consists of the following:

1. Quarterly Ambient Air Quality and Noise Monitoring in key-receptor areas.
2. Quarterly Stack Emissions Testing to measure emission levels from Quezon’s stack.  Results have shown emissions to be well within the limits set by the Department of Environment and Natural Resource (DENR).
3. Surface and Groundwater Quality Monitoring.
4. Marine Ecology and Oceanography Monitoring which includes identification and study of marine organisms such as fish, seagrass and coral, as well as monitoring of water quality in Lamon Bay.  
5. Agriculture and Soils Monitoring to ensure that the power plant has no adverse impacts on the surrounding agriculture. Crops included in the studies are rice and coconuts. 

Terrestrial and Freshwater Ecology to identify and monitor flora and fauna within the area.

Community

Quezon Power established a sustainable development program that focuses on education, health, environment, livelihood, infrastructure development and community relations. The program embodies Quezon Power’s commitment to help improve the quality of life in Mauban.

One notable project is the Teacher Development Training Program which aims to enhance the teaching skills of public elementary school teachers in the areas of Math, Science and English.  

Under its health program, Quezon Power’s Food for Thought feeding program assists elementary students suffering from malnutrition. It also conducts regular medical and dental missions through free clinics at the plant site and community visits. 

Under its livelihood program, Quezon Power Trails Program provides training and development to farmers and small entrepreneurs, a vocational-technical scholarship program for out-of-school youth and two cooperatives—the Cagsiay Multi-Purpose Co-operative and the K4C2 Co-operative. Cagsiay MPC now has more than 200 members who have received skills training in reforestation, nursery management, construction, painting and financial management. The K4C2 women’s co-op is a complementary program to the Food for Thought feeding program. Mothers undergo training in proper nutrition, marketing, food and menu preparation, and they cook for program beneficiaries. They are also taught backyard vegetable farming, livestock raising and reproductive health. 

In coordination with DENR, Quezon Power also conducts an information, education and communication program to various schools and villages. The team disseminates information on bio-diversity, forest conservation, proper waste management and sustainable development practices.

Management

Quezon Power is led by a team of seasoned experts in various fields such as engineering, commercial relations, accounting and finance, public affairs, community relations and the environment. The team is headed by Quezon Power General Manager Simo Santavirta who has played key management, development and commercial roles at InterGen since joining the company in 2002.  Prior to joining InterGen, Mr. Santavirta held positions with Mirant Europe BV, Fortrum Power and Siemens AG, among others.  Mr. Santavirta holds a Masters of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Helsinki University of Technology with specializations in power plant engineering and energy economics.