Study for solar power plants in Cebu towns, cities to start

CEBU, Philippines - Preparatory work for the proposed 520-megawatt solar power plants in the province is now underway.

“What we are doing now is setting the groundwork,” said Benjamin Joseph Yap, the Provincial Capitol’s Investment and Promotions officer.

He said a feasibility study will start anytime soon, or before the May 9 national and local elections. The two-month study will include the identification of viable sites where the power plants will be setup.

“We have to conduct study on the land if it is fit for solar (power plants) but that takes time. So we can do all these processes before elections,” he added.

The solar power project is proposed by YEC International, an engineering company.

Yap said the company offered to undertake the project, from the study to implementation stages, at no cost to the provincial government.

The project aims to put up solar power plants in every municipality and city in the province with a capacity of 10 megawatts each. This means that more than 500 megawatts would be generated for the entire province once the project will be realized.

The project would also need at least 10 hectares of continuous lot in each municipality.

Yap said though that a consultation with mayors have yet to be conducted.

Through the project, clean energy will be used to power households and would also help augment the power source, in anticipation of power shortages in the province, said Yap.

He added that based on the proposal of  YEC International, the power plants can withstand strong typhoons.

“This (project) generates income for them (LGUs). One is business taxes. At the same time, it is a good project for all of us. This is something that we can all be proud of because this is clean energy,” he said.

YEC has already put up solar power plants in Manila, which also supplies the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.

The company is also proposing to undertake the 300-kilometer trans-axial highway project, which would traverse from Daanbantayan to Santander.

Yap said the company already submitted its letter of intent last year and offered to conduct a comprehensive study on the project.

The company will soon be forging a memorandum of understanding with the province for the project, he added.

Putting up solar power plant is among the component of the trans-axial project. Other components are the “eco-zones”, a water management system consisting of potable and non-potable water supply, a wastewater collection system, and wind power plants. — (FREEMAN)