ib vogt Starts 99-MWp Solar Park, Energising Southern Philippines Industry

• German developer ib vogt breaks ground on a 99-MWp solar park in Mindanao, boosting local manufacturing and grid reliability.

Berlin-based solar and storage specialist ib vogt has begun construction of a 99-megawatt-peak photovoltaic plant in the Philippine province of Bukidnon, Mindanao—a region better known for pineapples and coffee than power projects. The initiative marks the developer’s second foray into the archipelago and underscores the country’s shift toward large-scale renewables to tame both electricity costs and chronic shortages.

Located on gently rolling pastureland twenty kilometres east of Malaybalay City, the array will mount high-efficiency bifacial modules on single-axis trackers to maximise output during Mindanao’s long, cloud-flecked afternoons. Once operational in late 2026, the facility is expected to feed roughly 150 gigawatt-hours a year into Davao Light’s distribution network, enough to cover the annual consumption of forty-five thousand homes.

The project is being delivered under the Philippines’ Renewable Portfolio Standards, which compel utilities to source an ever-larger share of electricity from green resources. ib vogt secured a twenty-year offtake agreement during last December’s Green Energy Auction 3, guaranteeing stable revenue while offering the utility a hedge against volatile imported coal and gas prices.

“Mindanao’s industrial parks are crying out for reliable, competitively priced power,” said David Ludwig, ib vogt’s director for Asia-Pacific. “Our plant will anchor fresh investment in food-processing and nickel-refining clusters that currently depend on ageing diesel gensets.”

Financing combines equity from ib vogt’s regional vehicle with peso-denominated debt provided by BDO Unibank and Germany’s DEG. The lenders highlighted the project’s strong environmental and social safeguards, including a commitment to hire and train two hundred local workers during the eighteen-month build phase.

Beyond its immediate impact, the Bukidnon site could serve as a springboard for hybrid expansion. ib vogt secured additional land and is studying battery storage to smooth output and capture evening peak prices—a feature the Department of Energy now favours in awarding future clean-energy contracts.

For a nation aiming to lift the renewable share of its generation mix to thirty-five percent by 2030, such bankable utility-scale projects are indispensable. ib vogt’s early mover advantage suggests more German-Philippine clean-tech collaborations are on the horizon.