Department of Energy Philippines (DOE)has been eyeing to improve the country’s energy security by emphasizing various policies to adopt renewable energy as a source of power. This forces the private and public agencies to further their efforts for climate change mitigation.
No new coal power plant projects
DOE is no longer accepting proposals to build new coal power plants with an exemption for few projects since last year. SMC Global Power Holdings Corp (SMCGP), which accounts for 40% of the Philippines’ coal portfolio is targeting to build a 300 M pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant that is expected to fully operate in 2026. SMCGP also announced the cease of three coal-fired projects that have a total capacity of 1.5 GW. Numerous banks also suspended lending funds for new coal power plant projects.
New energy sources
In June, DOE announced a partnership with the World Bank Group (WBG) to craft the Philippine offshore wind roadmap project. This can help to accelerate the country’s goal of achieving a 35% share of renewable energy in the energy mix by 2030. DOE has currently awarded five wind energy service contracts with a combined potential of 5GW of offshore wind— Guimaras Strait WPP, the Aparri Bay WPP, the Guimaras Strait II Wind Project, the Frontera Bay WPP, and the San Miguel Bay WPP. Based on early estimates by WBG, the Philippines has over 170 GW of offshore wind potential.
Moreover, DOE also diversifies energy sources by partnering with Australian and Japanese companies to explore the potentiality of hydrogen in the country.
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