150-megawatt wind power project breaks ground in Bago City

BACOLOD CITY — The Bago Negros Energy Corp. (BNEC) broke ground for the construction of the 150-megawatt (MW) wind power project, the first of its kind in Negros Island Region, in a ceremony held in Barangay Calumangan on Wednesday.

With a total initial project cost of P9.78 billion, the BNEC proposes to construct and operate 23 wind turbine generators (WTGs) aimed at strengthening power supply in the Visayas grid and supporting the national renewable energy roadmap.

“We are not only witnessing the start of a structure, we are witnessing the beginning of a legacy. This project is a symbol of what we can achieve when vision meets collaboration,” Mayor Marina Javellana-Yao said in her message.

“When government, private sector and community come together not just for development, but for sustainable development,” she noted.

Javellana-Yao and Vice Mayor Andrew Torres joined BNEC vice president Passakorn Panyaratanakorn, deputy country representative Li Hongjiang of PowerChina Philippines Corp., and Assistant Director Ruby de Guzman of the Department of Energy (DOE) Renewable Energy Management Bureau during the groundbreaking ceremony.

“This is our first project in the Philippines. Right now, we have put our focus on the Philippine market. This is going to be our first, that’s why we would like it to be a hundred percent success,” Panyaratanakorn said.

BNEC is backed by Thailand-based renewable energy developer Sermsang Power Corp. Public Co. Ltd., which lists the Bago City Wind Power Project as one of its projects on its official website.

“You have diverse renewable energy resources. With this 150-MW wind power project, we are seeing that Bago City is now becoming the rising renewable energy hub in Negros Occidental,” De Guzman said.

The construction of the 150-MW wind power project is expected to take about a year.

Based on the project’s executive summary, the DOE awarded the Bago City Wind Power Project a service contract area covering 5,265 hectares, which is designated to accommodate the core operational facilities of the wind power plant, substation, access road, support facilities and other supplementary areas.

The area spans seven barangays, including Sampinit, Taloc, Calumangan, Busay, Lag-asan, Balingasag, and Napoles, where the 23 WTGs will be constructed.

Barangay Napoles, where a substation will also be located, will host 10 WTGs; Busay, seven; Calumangan, three; and one each for Taloc, Sampinit and Lag-asan. /apl