Fueled by a fresh P4.4-billion loan, Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC) is advancing its 125-megawatt peak solar project in Sta. Barbara, Pangasinan.

The company said in a stock exchange report on Thursday that the loan, secured as early as March, supported the completion of Citicore Solar (CS) Pangasinan.

"Project finance is key to realizing the renewable energy transition, with projects like CS Pangasinan able to move faster and mitigate risks with the support of partners like Security Bank, who understand that sustainability requires cooperation between industries," CREC President and CEO Oliver Tan said.

The project, currently under construction, received a Certificate of Energy Project of National Significance from the Department of Energy, which expedited key permitting processes to ensure timely completion before year-end.

Likewise, it supported CREC’s target of building five gigawatts of renewable energy capacity within five years.

CS Pangasinan is among three CREC projects in the province, alongside Citicore Solar Pangasinan 2 in Binalonan, currently under construction, and Citicore Wind Pangasinan, which was in early development.

All three projects were awarded capacity under the Department of Energy’s Green Energy Auction Program 2 in 2023, securing a 20-year offtake contract with the government.