Philippines

PV systems have helped farmers in the Philippines become less dependent on rain. Projects in Camarines Sur have shown pumping water with solar is not only cheap but can also raise rice yield.

German project developer for renewable energies BayWa r.e. Renewable Energy GmbH has launched a new solar systems distribution business in Makati City, the Philippines.

The government of the Philippines will spend $500 million on solar-powered water supply and desalination in remote areas of Mindanao, the second-largest island in the archipelago. Elsewhere, a Finnish study has suggested drought-hit Iran could benefit from renewable-powered desalination.

Manila Electric Co.’s (Meralco) power generation arm is looking into a possible 110-megawatt floating solar facility on Laguna de Bay as part of its renewable energy thrust.

Philippines-based AC Energy will work with UPC Solar Asia Pacific – the solar energy unit of Hong Kong-headquartered UPC Renewables – to build more than 1 GW of solar in the coming years, with an initial focus on Asian markets such as India, South Korea and Taiwan.

In a bid to reduce its carbon footprint the oil giant is ramping up its renewable energy production at a refinery in the Philippines. The news was announced by the company in a week which saw it named seventh worst corporate contributor to the climate crisis since awareness of emissions-related damage first emerged.

Philippines utility Meralco has sunk PHP424 million (US$8.2 million) of equity funding into its renewables subsidiary, MGreen, to support 210MW of solar projects.

Deal documents have been signed for the Philippines to add a utility-scale solar project towards the southwest, a plant set be deployed by a foreign construction player.

Bacolod is expected to host its first large scale PV project within a year after domestic renewables firm Amatera signed a deal with Korean business TPC Construction Corp.

The power company has launched three procurement auctions for a total of 2.9 GW of power generation capacity. Renewable energy companies are among the bidders to have expressed interest in providing electricity.

An EU funded solar-plus-storage project has been tendered in the Philippines. The United Nations is seeking bids for the system, to support the for the seaweed industry on the island of Tawi-Tawi. Combining PV with aquaculture brings many advantages for both, including water conservation, a more controlled aquatic environment, and ecosystem restoration.