A unit of Solar Philippines is preparing to build a 225 megawatt (MW) solar facility in Peñaranda, Nueva Ecija, which the parent firm described as the “largest of its kind” in the country to date.
In a statement, Solar Philippines said it is setting up the Solar Energy Zones, Inc. (SEZ) to host solar power projects in its 10,000 hectares land located in Batangas, Nueva Ecija, and Tarlac.
Solar Philippines founder Leandro Leviste said with the growing demand for new solar power plants, there is now a scarcity of land to put up the projects.
Leviste said the SEZ is inspired by solar parks in India where firms can co-locate for their solar projects.
“Our aim is no longer to compete with the country’s power companies, but to enable them to build projects, to ensure that solar soon becomes the largest source of new energy in the Philippines,” he said.
Leviste added the SEZ will help firms make it possible to build large-scale solar farms.
“Now the power industry is convinced that it is, we are making available these sites to help others enter the market,” he said.
In the coming months, SEZ will announce future locators that will be constructing their solar projects in the next five years.
“The capacity of these will be multiple times greater than the country’s total solar capacity to date, making solar a major share of the country’s energy mix,” Solar Philippines said.
