Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Biggest gathering of RE stakeholders set Dec 2-3

By Donnabelle L. Gatdula (The Philippine Star) Updated October 13, 2010 12:00 AM Comments (0) View comments


MANILA, Philippines - The country’s biggest gathering of stakeholders in the renewable energy industry will take place on Dec. 2-3, 2010 in a bid to further promote the use of the power source.
The Renewable Energy Conference and Expo Manila 2010 will examine the progress made and identify measures that will help scale-up renewable energy development. 
About 33 percent of the country’s power generating capacity, or 5,355 megawatts (MW), is currently sourced from renewable energy resources.  
The Renewable Energy Act passed in 2008 aims to double the country’s renewable energy capacity in 10 years from the law’s passage.
Organized by the Renewable Energy (RE) Coalition, in cooperation with the Department of Energy (DOE), the conference will be guided by the theme, “From Policy to Action: Generating Impacts in 2010 and Beyond.”
The conference will offer an opportunity for genuine dialogue among at least 350 stakeholders - including Cabinet-level officials, legislators, international financial organizations, international RE experts, RE developers, members of civil society, the academe and the scientific community - to assess the gains made and the challenges faced in the implementation of the RE Law.
Some 205 contracts have been signed by the DOE with RE developers since the passage of the RE Law. 
“It is important that these contracts translate to additional clean energy capacities and benefits for the country at large,” Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said.

Almendras said RE would play a vital role in bringing electricity in off-grid communities.
He said non-government organizations working in the field of sustainable development and poverty housing, such as Habitat for Humanity Philippines and various church-based groups, will be on hand to seek broader application of RE technologies in off-grid communities and areas that are not currently serviced by electricity generators and suppliers. 
Some 962 barangays have yet to be provided with electricity as of December 2008.

No comments:

Post a Comment