First Gen-owned geothermal power leader Energy Development Corporation (EDC) has kicked off its COVID-19 vaccination program for its strong workforce of nearly 1,500 and their dependents across the country to help keep them safe and support the government’s aim of achieving herd immunity against the virus.
“We are one with the government in its goal to protect all Filipinos against the COVID-19 virus. As part of our support to the national vaccination program, we procured vaccines for our employees and their dependents through multi-party agreements in partnership with the Philippine government. We also urged and encouraged our employees, through a series of health dialogues with our medical experts, even before the arrival of the vaccines to ease their worries and help them decide to get vaccinated,” said Atty. Allan V. Barcena, EDC Assistant Vice President and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility and Public Relations.
EDC piloted its vaccination in its Pasig City Head Office last July 24. It was soon followed by the inoculation of employees in its geothermal sites in Leyte and Negros Island. Its Bicol, Kidapawan City, and Ilocos Norte workforce will have their first dose this early August. The company expects to complete its vaccination program within the fourth quarter of this year.
EDC’s vaccination administration is being done by its partners from AC Health and Reliance United that both have the capacity and manpower to conduct the inoculation of its employees in all its sites across the country.
EDC gave its employees the opportunity to have their dependents inoculated under its vaccination program as part of its commitment to help keep their families safe. More than 3,600 dependents across all sites were listed in the program.
Beyond producing clean and renewable sources of power, EDC’s top priority is the safety of its employees. It can be recalled that to ensure the safety of its employees when the pandemic hit the country in early 2020, EDC already declared a work-from-home arrangement for all employees whose work did not require them to be physically present in its power plant facilities even before the national government declared a lockdown in the second week of March 2020.
“Safety is our culture in EDC. While we value producing that much needed power for our country, especially during this pandemic, we always make sure that our workforce is safe. Having our employees vaccinated against COVID-19 is one step closer to our country’s way to recovery,” Barcena added.
EDC, the largest pure renewable energy company in the Philippines, operates 1,186 MW of geothermal, 150 MW of wind, 132 MW of hydroelectric power, and 12 MW of solar power plants— for a total of 1,480 MW of clean and renewable energy.
It accounts for 19 percent of the country’s total installed renewable energy capacity and 62 percent of the country’s total installed geothermal capacity as of December 2020, putting the Philippines on the map as the 3rd largest geothermal producer in the world.
