Over one thousand students in 14 off-grid public elementary schools in General Nakar, Quezon Province were recipients of rechargeable solar lamps from TeaM Energy Corporation (TEC).
In simple ceremonies at the General Nakar Central School, 1,111 units of solar lamps were turned over by TeaM Energy Foundation Inc, the corporate social responsibility arm of TEC to representatives of the Department of Education (DEPED).
The project was undertaken in coordination with the office of Quezon 1st District Representative, Cong. Anna Katrina Enverga, who, with the help of the DEPED district office in General Nakar, identified the areas in most need of the solar lamps.
“These solar lamps can last for five to eight hours in operation. Hopefully student recipients will be able to use these when studying their lessons at home during the evening,“ said Froilan Gregory Romualdez III, External Affairs Head of TEC. “This partnership with Congresswoman Enverga and the DepEd is part of our company’s commitment to partner with government in uplifting people’s lives. Through this simple project, we hope to help give a brighter future to these students,” he added.
Students in the remote off-grid areas had to previously rely on candles or kerosene lamps to go through their lessons at night, making it extra-challenging to study when the sun went down.
TeaM Energy, a partnership between two noted Japanese firms, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and Marubeni Corporation, is the largest Japanese investment in the country with over 2,000 MW of installed generating capacity in Luzon. TeaM Energy operates two coal fired power plants: the 735 MW Pagbilao Power Station in Quezon Province and the 1218 MW Sual Power Station in Pangasinan. It also has a 20% stake in the Ilijan natural gas project in Batangas.