BREAKING GROUND | Energy Undersecretary Sharon Garin (second from left), joins local officials and officers of Taft Solar Energy during the groundbreaking of the P250-million solar farm project in Taft, Eastern Samar on April 21, 2023. (Photo from the Facebook page of the Taft Hydro Energy Corp.)
TAFT, Eastern Samar, Philippines — A solar farm project broke ground here on Friday, aimed at providing a sustainable power source and reducing the power rates in the province of Eastern Samar, officials said.
Benjie Picardo, the president and CEO of the Taft Solar Energy project, said the company has earmarked P250 million for this project, which is expected to be operational by September this year.
The solar farm, located in Barangay San Rafael of this town, has a capacity of 20 megawatts (MW), almost enough to supply the current needs of the entire province, which stand at 23 MW.
Picardo said they were looking forward to the completion of the project, which is being undertaken in response to the national government’s goal to harness renewable energy sources as a way to help reduce carbon emissions and mitigate effects of climate change.
Model
Energy Undersecretary Sharon Garin, who attended the event, said she was happy that the province would now have its own source of power, saying this could be a model for other localities in the country.
She said the Department of Energy has committed to help Taft Solar Project accomplish its project in Eastern Samar.
“I am glad that the company is into harnessing renewable energy sources,” said Garin, as it would “ensure energy security in the province.”
House Minority Floor Leader and 4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan said they were looking forward to having their energy needs provided by Taft Solar.
“Once the solar farm project starts to operate, it would help the province have a sustained power supply and achieve a lower power rate,” he said.
At present, the power rate in the province stands at P19 per kilowatt hour (kWh).
Libanan encouraged Eastern Samar Electric Cooperative (Esamelco) to procure its energy supply from Taft Solar Project, which currently gets its power needs from GN Corp., which is based in Bataan.
Taft Solar Project has projected to sell its energy at just P5.07 per kWh. Esamelco, on the other hand, buys its power needs at about P9 per kWh from GN Corp.