Toshiba's crucial role amidst Asia's green energy and sustainability revolution

Toshiba is now looking at boosting Asia’s energy needs in a sustainable and environmentally conscious manner.

Apart from increasing per capita income, Asia’s stellar economic growth over the last few years have also prompted the region to produce exponentially growing energy supply — mostly from fossil fuels — that has been taking a toll not only on the region but also the world’s environment. So how can Asia meet its rapidly growing energy needs in a more efficient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly way, without compromising its massive growth potential? Toshiba wants to be the answer to that.

Backed by over 140 years of experience and expertise providing cutting-edge technology and innovative solutions to society’s pressing problems, Toshiba today sees itself as a continually vital cog in Asia’s energy revolution. Beyond providing total energy systems and solutions including environmentally friendly high efficiency thermal power generation, hydro and geothermal power generation facilities, the company wants to show, at its heart, that renewable options — when done right — can be reliable and can offer a clearer path to a more sustainable and clean energy future.

“Toshiba was founded on the belief of serving people first and the desire to solve people’s problems through technology,” said Yoshihiro Aburatani, President and CEO, Toshiba Corporation Energy Systems & Solutions Company, adding that some of the improvements they’ve been working on over the years in Asia include systems efficiency and development of low carbon emissions solutions to address environmental issues.

Long history of success

Toshiba has had a long history of success in the energy business — from clean energy and energy efficiency systems — from the development of Japan’s first domestically produced hydro turbine and generator over 120 years ago, to the launch of one of the most advanced energy technologies to date — the H2One™, a hydrogen-based autonomous energy supply system which promotes the realisation of a carbon-free society. In the Asia-Pacific region, Toshiba also enjoys over 50 years of green energy footprint. “We have contributed to the stable supply of energy to support Asian countries’ strong economic growth by providing highly reliable systems,” Aburatani shared, adding that their long-standing personnel expertise have also helped to not only raise the company’s already high standards, but also help raise the quality of energy supply and sophistication in the region.

In Vietnam, Toshiba started with supplying four hydraulic turbines for a hydroelectric power station in the southern part of the country in 1963 to supply electricity to the previously fossil fuel-reliant industrial centres of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) and Bien Hoa. Also, for coal-fired power generation, Toshiba received orders and will provide highly efficient thermal power generation solutions to contribute both to environmental considerations and stable power supply. In Indonesia, Toshiba has supplied or received orders for various turbines (steam, hydraulic, and geothermal) across the country with a combined capacity of over 9,300 megawatts (MW). Recently, one of the largest geothermal power plants in the world, which Toshiba contributed to, just started operations in March 2017.

Ready to offer energy solutions

The company has also had a long history of providing clean energy solutions to the Philippines, supplying main power generating equipment and auxiliary units for thermal, hydro, and geothermal power plants. Their first project in the Philippines was for a hydropower plant in 1964, which still runs today. In Malaysia, Toshiba also won a major order for 2,000 MW ultra-super critical steam turbine and generators for a coal-fired power generation project — state-of-the-art technologies that lessen CO2 emission. 

With Asia poised to continue growing at a rapid pace over the next few years, energy demand will continue to grow with it. Toshiba, as it has been doing throughout the decades, will continue to offer efficient and effective solutions to meet this need. “Asia is an important market for Toshiba, and we established Toshiba Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. in 1995 as Toshiba’s regional headquarters for the Asia Pacific region, which oversees and supports operations in the region. As countries in the region continue to experience rapid economic growth, Toshiba is ready to offer energy solutions that are well-suited to their needs and to ensure a low-carbon society,” Aburatani concluded.