List of pending renewable energy proposals grow long

BY EUAN PAULO C. AÑONUEVO REPORTER

THE list of renewable energy contracts awaiting approval by the Department of Energy is growing long, according to the agency. In a report, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras admitted there are still 382 renewable energy contracts awaiting his approval.

Of the total number, 255 projects are for hydro, 62 for wind, 23 for biomass, 21 for geothermal, 18 for ocean energy, and three for solar energy.

The Energy department has signed 205 renewable energy contracts since last year after the passage of the Renewable Energy Law in 2008.

These contracts are worth over P87.74 billion in potential investments and promise to generate 4,400 megawatts of clean and indigenous power.

This volume of electricity is more than enough to supply the present demand from the Visayas and Mindano, which are both suffering from power shortages.

Almendras said that the approval of the pending projects would depend on the resolution of “burning issues” concerning the industry.

These issues include the setting of the renewable portfolio standard, which would require distribution utilities to secure power sourced from clean and indigenous energy sources; and the feed-in-tariff rates, which would guarantee project proponents’ returns through power rates.

The Energy chief said that other renewable energy policies also have to be put in place, such as allowing consumers to choose renewable energy as their power source, as well as the sale of any excess power to the grid.

Regulators are still ironing out these policies but are expected to pass the tariff incentive scheme for renewable energy projects early next year.