More renewable energy projects apply for DOE OK

MANILA, Philippines – More renewable energy (RE) projects are seeking clearance from the Philippine government as of end-October, data from the Department of Energy (DOE) showed.

There are 272 projects with a potential capacity of 5,031.82 megawatts (MW) with pending contracts, the DOE said.

Bulk of these projects are hydropower developments with a potential generating capacity of 2,696.37 MW.

Other contracts that are pending are 61 solar projects, 11 wind, five biomass and two each for ocean energy and geothermal developments.

The Philippine government has awarded 616 RE contracts with a generating capacity of 12,138.41 MW as of end-October.

Of the total, 577 were for grid-use while 39 were for self-generation, the DOE data showed.

Hydropower projects make up most of the awarded contracts at 344, followed by solar developments at 105.

Meanwhile, there are 62 wind, 65 biomass, 43 geothermal and seven ocean energy contracts.

The DOE has long been pushing for RE development to diversify the country’s power sources and ensure adequate power supply.

Under the National Renewable Energy Program (NREP), the Philippines is targeting a RE-based capacity of 15,304 MW in the next 15 years.

To support this, the DOE issued a new fuel policy mix, mandating a 30 percent installed capacity for RE. Currently, RE capacity is at 28 percent.

In order to meet these targets, the DOE has cut down the processing of RE projects to 45 days from 100 days.

A feed-in-tariff (FIT) scheme was also implemented, giving power developers a set of incentives for putting up more expensive RE projects.