5 provinces back microgrid projects of Solar Para sa Bayan

MANILA, Philippines — Solar Para Sa Bayan (SPSB) has received the backing of mayors for its microgrid projects in five provinces.

SPSB said it is bringing 24/7 power to 12 towns in provinces including Mindoro, Palawan, Masbate, Cagayan, Aurora, to benefit 200,000 Filipinos. This will be at zero cost to the government.

Out of the five provinces, Aurora and Cagayan were among the worst affected by Typhoon Ompong.

In Dingalan, Aurora, evacuation centers were powered by SPSB’s minigrid system.

While the town is connected to the national grid and is only four hours from Metro Manila, Dingalan suffered decades of outages and higher cost electricity than even island municipalities.

“We thank Solar Para Sa Bayan for fulfilling the dream of Dingaleños, by solving our power crisis and reducing the cost of electricity. This is a great help for a town like ours to achieve a stronger economy and better life for our people,” Dingalan Mayor Shierwin Taay said.

In Calayan, Cagayan, where cellphone signal has yet to be restored, SPSB has established a minigrid to bring 24/7 power for the first time in the town’s history, to help the town recover from the typhoon’s devastation.

SPSB is now working to extend its services to more towns in Cagayan where the local electric utility has not yet been able to restore power since the typhoon hit two weeks ago.

In Claveria, Masbate, a municipality of over 45,000 people is now receiving 24/7 power for the first time in its history.

In Dumaran, Palawan, a town that has never been reached by an electric cooperative, town Mayor Medwin Pablico said the town is now enjoying 24/7 electricity for the first time with the SPSB project.

In Lubang, Occidental Mindoro, Mayor Roberto Sanchez said investors have had difficulty developing resorts because of the expensive and unreliable electricity.

“(We) have appealed to the government to give us better alternatives to our electric coop. Solar Para Sa Bayan has answered our call, and we hope it will be able to serve more people very soon,” he said.

Having completed Southeast Asia’s largest Solar Minigrid in Paluan, Mindoro in March this year, SPSB has applied for a franchise to more efficiently extend its services to other parts of the Philippines that want alternative choices for electric service.

This is to help the Department of Energy (DOE) achieve its goal of 100 percent electrification and affordable, reliable electricity for all Filipinos by 2022.

“We are grateful for the support of more than 20 towns that have already passed resolutions endorsing Solar Para Sa Bayan as an alternative choice for cheap, clean, reliable electricity at zero cost to government. Simply through measures to allow real competition in the power industry, no Filipino should suffer poor electric service ever again,” SPSB president Leandro Leviste said.