Written by Madelaine B. Miraflor Published on 04 March 2013
The industry group of hydropower developers is calling on the government to address funding concerns for hydro, wind, solar and biomass projects in the country.
”Developers are given a challenge to do that because we have just managed to convince local banks over the past few years that the RE [Renewable Energy] Act is now being implemented, but this was something which the banks were caught surprise by,” Knud Hedeager, Smith Bell Mini-Hydro Corp. chairman and director for special concerns of Renewable Philippine Association of Small Scale Hydropower Inc. (PassHydro), said.
”The challenge given to us all developers is how to get the financing in place for the projects even if we have done all the hard work, we still need the financing,” he added.
PassHydro is seeking to raise awareness in developing renewable energy projects in the country through a hydro summit to be held next week. Passhydro, in collaboration with the Department of Energy (DOE) and industry partners, will host the Philippine Hydropower Summit 2013 in Makati City on March 14 to 15.
PassHydro President Jose Silvestre Natividad said that the summit intends to raise awareness in developing renewable energy, as well as to address the issues of hydropower developers with local government units (LGUs) and financing of projects.
Natividad said that some of the challenges that small- and large-scale hydro developers in the country are currently facing are financing of projects, LGUs and permits, which is the hardest to resolve since they have to deal with indigenous people.
“In permit alone, there are already so many challenges, you’re susceptible to politics,” Natividad said.
“The purpose of the hydro summit is to get everyone in one room to work out solutions,” he added.
According to him, the possible investments that could come in for renewable energy will bring more benefits to the country and serve as a catalyst for economic activity for far-flung areas. The summit will also highlight current hydropower issues and opportunities, aimed at providing awareness on the state of Philippine hydropower developments.
PassHydro is the association of hydropower developers, suppliers and consultants in the Philippines that was incorporated in February 1998. It serves as the institutional and implementing partner of the government for the promotion and utilization of the country’s water resources for small-scale hydropower generation as a sustainable and reliable source of clean energy. source
No comments:
Post a Comment