Solar power facility rises in Romblon

By Lenie Lectura - March 30, 2020
https://businessmirror.com.ph/2020/03/30/solar-power-facility-rises-in-romblon/

The Romblon Electric Cooperative Inc. (Romelco) has put up a P12-million 200-kilowatt (kW) solar photovoltaic power system in four barangays as part of its Grid-Tied Solar Roof Mounted Project, which aims to provide clean, sustainable, and reliable energy to its consumers.

The solar power facility is composed of four solar panels installed on the rooftops of the four covered courts in Barangays Lunas, Macalas, Mapula, and Ilauran in Romblon. Each has a capacity of 50 kilowatt, or a total installed capacity of 200 kW, which already generates electricity for the consumers.

“This is more efficient than a single big installation. Since this is distributed, the installation is fast. It only took us less than a week to set up the panels for each rooftop,” said Romelco General Manager Rene Fajilagutan.

Romelco plans to expand the project throughout its entire coverage area. “This is our test-bed for the bigger distributed solar power plant. This year, our target installation is a 2-megawatt solar energy system,” he said.

The solar energy project was conceived in partnership with the local governments of Romblon. Fajilagutan said Romelco will pay lease to the four barangays for the use of rooftop spaces for a period of 20 years.

The project is also part of Romelco’s commitment to generate 90 percent of its electricity supply from renewable-energy (RE) sources, such as solar, wind, hydro, and biomass, by the end of the year.

Its other RE projects include 900-kW wind turbines on the hills of Barangays Agnay, Bagacay, and Lonos; 1,350-kW mini hydro power plant in Cantingas, San Fernando, Sibuyan Island; 30-kW solar diesel hybrid generation system in Cobrador Island; and 18-kW biomass gasifier in Barangay Alad, Romblon.

The Office of Renewable Energy Development (ORED) of the National Electrification Administration’s (NEA), meanwhile, said more electric cooperatives (ECs) are venturing into renewable-energy projects.

NEA will subsidize the feasibility study on the development of hybrid mini-grid system using renewable energy and battery system for four ECs.

A separate feasibility study on hybridization of existing diesel power plants with renewable energy and battery system for three ECs in Eastern Visayas is also ongoing, funded through subsidy from the National Economic and Development Authority.

Meanwhile, 10 ECs are also planning to develop microgrid projects in their respective franchise areas. However, the Association of Isolated Electric Cooperatives Inc. (AIEC) said these planned projects have no funding yet.