ThermaPrime buys 3 rigs for EDC

By Lenie Lectura – July 31, 2024
from Business Mirror

In photo: The Rig 3 Defender DC Rig 1000hp Drawworks Capacity during testing and commissioning in Texas, USA.

Lopez-led ThermaPrime Drilling Corp. (ThermaPrime) is acquiring three more geothermal drilling rigs to support the geothermal expansion program of another Lopez-led firm, Energy Development Corp. (EDC).

Two of the three drilling rigs have a capacity of 1,500 horsepower (hp), while the third has a 1,000-hp capacity. ThermaPrime purchased the rigs recently from the United States and United Arab Emirates.

ThermaPrime said the acquisition of three additional drilling rigs augments its two current 2,000-hp rigs and supports the development of additional geothermal wells of EDC, the country’s biggest vertically integrated geothermal company.

EDC is currently undertaking a P30-billion program to drill until 2026 another 40 geothermal wells in its geothermal sites in Albay, Sorsogon, Leyte, Negros, and Davao for its parent firm First Gen Corporation (First Gen). The drilling forms part of the overall program of First Gen as a group to expand its renewable energy (RE) capacity by over 7,000 megawatts by year 2030.

ThermaPrime, which specializes in drilling geothermal wells and related services, has been a key enabler of geothermal power in the country completing over 200 projects since the company was founded in 2011.

First Gen is the Philippines’s leading RE producer, with 26 hydro, wind, solar, and geothermal power facilities with over 1,650 MW of total RE capacity. In 2023 alone, First Gen’s portfolio of RE plants generated 8,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity, primarily from its geothermal units.

Last May, First Gen reported that its attributable recurring net income fell by 9 percent to $81 million in the first quarter from $89 million last year, mainly due to lower revenues from its units. From January to March, FGen’s revenues stood at $596 million, almost 9 percent lower than the previous year’s $652 million. This was a result of lower volumes of electricity sold during the quarter across all platforms.