Consumers are set to benefit from cleaner and more stable power supply as the Bohol province’s first large utility-scale solar plant begins commercial operations this week.

In a stock exchange report on Monday, Yuchengco-led PetroEnergy Resources Corp. said the 27.121 megawatt-peak (MWp) Dagohoy Solar Power Plant (DSPP) will start commercial operations on Wednesday.

The project secured necessary regulatory clearances, and the Energy Regulatory Commission granted it provisional authority to operate on 4 July.

The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines, on the other hand, confirmed DSPP’s commercial operations date in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market on 8 July. 

"We are proud that our Dagohoy solar power facility is set to begin commercial operations in Bohol adding much needed indigenous and clean energy in the province which has long relied on imported power from neighboring provinces and a few small capacity diesel and hydro power plants operating in the province," said PetroGreen Energy Corp. Assistant Vice President for Power Markets Dave P. Gadiano.

"Our formal commercial participation in the WESM also marks the commencement of our power supply agreement with our offtaker SN Aboitiz Power," he added.

DSPP forms part of the 111.58-MWac solar portfolio of Rizal Green Energy Corp., a joint venture between PGEC and Japan’s Taisei Corp.

Other projects include the 19.61-MWoc San Jose plant in Nueva Ecija, which is presently awaiting regulatory approvals, as well as the 25.01-MWc Bugallon plant in Pangasinan and the 39.84-MWdc Limbauan plant in Isabela, both targeted for completion later this year.