5-megawatt solar farm to be put up in Iloilo

ILOILO CITY—Efforts to tap renewable sources of energy amid the fast-growing power need of Iloilo province will get a boost with the putting up of a

5.67-megawatt solar farm in Miag-ao town in Iloilo.

The solar farm that will cost at least P500 million will be put up by Cosmo Solar Energy Inc. on a 15-hectare property in Barangay (village) Naratan-an, about

7 kilometers from the town proper of Miag-ao.

The town, 42 km south of Iloilo City, also hosts the main campus of the University of the Philippines Visayas.

The solar farm, the biggest single investment in Miag-ao, is projected to expand another 15 ha with a total capacity of 10 MW.

Miag-ao Mayor Macario Napulan said the investment would generate employment especially during the construction stage and also boost the municipality’s revenue in terms of business and property taxes.

The groundbreaking for the project is set tomorrow, Oct. 21. The solar plant is expected to be completed by February next year, according to Napulan.

Environmentalists and conservation groups have been pushing for the putting up of power plants using renewable sources of energy like solar, wind, hydro and biomass instead of fossilized fuel like coal and oil. But investments have not come as significantly and as fast as the construction of coal plants.

Trans-Asia Power Generation Corp. is completing the construction of a 54-MW wind farm in Cabano, Suclaran and M. Chavez in San Lorenzo town on Guimaras Island. The plant is expected to start commercial operation this year.

The initial phase of the project would include 27 windmills, which can each produce 20 MW. The next phase of the project will involve the construction of 23 additional windmills in Sibunag and Nueva Valencia towns.

Sunwest Water and Electric Co. Inc. is also constructing an 8-MW hydropower plant in Bugasong town in Antique province. It is also expected to be operational within the year.

Power demand has increased significantly in recent years, especially in Iloilo, due to major commercial and residential projects and investments.