The Department of Energy (DOE) has green-lighted ‘indefinite extension’ on the award of feed-in-tariff (FIT) incentives for run-of-river (ROR) hydropower projects that will be pursued by renewable energy (RE) developers.
In an advisory issued by Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi on December 23, 2020, the FIT extension had not been time-bound, rather, it was specified that the cut-off shall depend on when the entire 250 megawatts allotment for run-of-river hydropower installations shall be fully subscribed to.
“The extension of the FIT system for ROR hydropower shall continue until full subscription of the 250MW installation target is achieved,” the DOE order has stipulated.
The department emphasized that it acted on the longer period for hydro FIT availment based on a recommendation that was lodged by the National Renewable Energy Board (NREB), the body that oversees RE project developments in the country.
“The NREB requested for and endorsed to the DOE the granting of the extension of the deadline for the successful commissioning for FIT eligibility of ROR hydropower projects from December 31, 2019 to such date that the installation target of 250MW is fully subscribed,” the DOE reiterated.
The initially stretched period for the hydro FIT award was until end-December 2019; but on that specified timeframe, the targeted developments were still not achieved.
“Despite the extension of the FIT deadline for ROR hydropower, the 250MW installation target remain undersubscribed,” the energy department has stated.
It further qualified that as of November 25 this year, total ROR hydro installations with FIT incentives just stood at 146.113 megawatts –covering 15 projects that had already been issued with certificates of endorsement for FIT availments.
From the current standing of the installed hydro capacities, the remaining projects that could still corner FIT incentives would be 103.887 megawatts, according to the DOE.
In the last round of FIT award for hydro technology, the rate was already ‘degressed’ or reduced by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to P5.8705 per kilowatt hour (kWh) compared to the first wave FIT rate of P5.90 per kWh.
As noted by the energy department, several hydro projects are presently at varying stages of implementation and these are expected to be slugging each other out in the continuing FIT race for hydro developments.