Japan’s Kansai Electric Power Co. (KANSAI) has agreed to acquire a 14% stake in the holding company developing the 600-megawatt Wawa Pumped Storage Hydropower Project in Rizal, marking the utility’s first investment in a pumped storage hydropower project outside Japan and adding momentum to the Philippines’ renewable energy transition.
KANSAI said it has signed definitive agreements to subscribe to a 14% equity interest in PMJVCo Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of Prime Infrastructure Capital Inc. PMJVCo is the parent company of Olympia Violago Water & Power Inc., which owns and will operate the Wawa Pumped Storage Hydropower Project.
Following the transaction, Prime Hydropower Energy Inc. will retain an 86% effective interest in PMJVCo. Prime Hydropower is one-third owned by First Gen Corporation through FGEN Aqua Power Holdings Inc., giving the Lopez-led power producer an indirect stake in the project.
Located in Rizal, the Wawa project is designed as a variable-speed pumped storage hydropower facility with a maximum generating capacity of 600 MW and up to 6,000 megawatt-hours of daily energy storage. Commercial operations are targeted to begin in 2030.
The Department of Energy has designated the project as an Energy Project of National Significance, recognizing its role in strengthening the country’s power infrastructure.
Unlike conventional hydropower plants, pumped storage facilities act as grid-scale batteries by using surplus electricity—particularly from solar and wind farms—to pump water to an upper reservoir before releasing it to generate electricity during periods of peak demand.
The technology is increasingly viewed as a critical component of the Philippines’ energy transition as the country accelerates renewable energy deployment while maintaining grid reliability.
The Wawa project is expected to help stabilize the Luzon grid by providing flexible capacity that can balance the variability of renewable energy generation and support the integration of more solar and wind projects into the national power system.
The investment also expands KANSAI’s overseas power portfolio to approximately 2,500 MW of attributable generating capacity.
The Japanese utility said the transaction aligns with its strategy of promoting renewable energy development in Japan and overseas while contributing to the realization of a zero-carbon society.
The investment comes as the Philippines ramps up efforts to expand renewable energy capacity and energy storage to achieve its target of increasing the share of renewables in the power generation mix to 35% by 2030 and 50% by 2040.
RenewableEnergy.ph previously reported that the DOE has been advancing policies to accelerate energy storage deployment, including new battery energy storage projects and distributed energy resource rules for off-grid areas.
Pumped storage hydropower is expected to complement these battery systems by providing long-duration storage that can support the country’s growing fleet of renewable energy projects.
