Aquino: Gov’t hitting ‘green’ targets set in Paris

CABANATUAN CITY—As his term draws to a close, President Aquino said his administration had started to fulfill a promise to use clean energy to meet the country’s requirements, after he inaugurated a P710-million solar power plant in Barangay Lourdes here.

Visiting the 10.26-megawatt  plant developed by First Cabanatuan Renewable Venture Inc. (FCRVI), Mr. Aquino expressed hope that it would encourage more businessmen to invest in renewable energy sources.

He said the government intended to generate 15,304 MW of renewable energy by 2030, from 5,439 MW developed in 2010.

Criticized for supporting more coal plants than clean energy sources, the President hailed the project for generating electricity without emitting 16,500 of carbon dioxide a year.

He said it summed up the government’s resolve to fulfill a commitment to fight climate change without compromising the economy.

“The project is clear evidence that we did not just set out to address the contemporary needs of our boss, the public, but we are also securing their future and the future of the world,” Mr. Aquino said, citing results of the 21st Conference of the Parties in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change  in Paris last year.

The FCRVI plant is the fifth solar power plant to be inaugurated by Mr. Aquino, who said 33 percent of the country’s energy requirements now came from renewable sources like solar, geothermal, hydro, wind and biomass.

Because the province had an agriculture economy, Nueva Ecija was one of the areas most vulnerable to extreme weather, he said.

Rep. Rosanna Vergara, also FCRVI president, said there was now a growing industry “that believes in the tenet what is green for the environment is also now green for the economy.”

On Thursday, Mr. Aquino unveiled a P3.3-billion water transmission project at Ipo Dam in Norzagaray town in Bulacan province. He said the project would improve the delivery of fresh mountain water to Metro Manila and nearby provinces. Armand Galang and Carmela Reyes-Estrope, Inquirer Central Luzon