DOE clears 100-MW Capiz solar project

The local renewable energy sector is poised for a major boost after the Department of Energy (DOE) approved a large-scale solar project in Capiz.

ESEC, a special-purpose company under Yuchengco-led PetroGreen Energy Corp. (PGEC), received the COA for its planned 90- to 100-megawatt direct current (MWDC) Panit-an Solar Power Project (PSPP).

“DOE’s COA grants ESEC the exclusive authority for the planned 90-100 MWDC PSPP, a ground-mounted solar project we will develop in 88 hectares of land we own in the municipality of Panit-an, Capiz,” PGEC PSPP Project Manager Hiroki Hiwatashi said on Tuesday.

Once completed, the Panit-an project will become PGEC’s largest single-site solar power facility.

The COA gives the company one year to secure development permits, carry out feasibility studies, and advance the project toward a final investment decision and the filing of a solar energy operating contract.

During a public consultation attended by municipal and barangay residents, as well as officials from several national agencies—including the Department of Agriculture, Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Education, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples—local leaders supported the project.

The Panit-an Sanggunian Bayan (Legislative Council) formally endorsed the project in a resolution issued early this month.