State-run National Power Corporation (NPC) and its foreign development-partners have gained traction on rural solar photovoltaic (PV) installations that are set to benefit at least four electric cooperatives (EC) in Visayas and Mindanao grids.

Via the Access to Sustainable Energy Programme (ASEP) which is its partnership with the European Union and the World Bank, the power firm reported that it already started on the turnover of the solar facilities to beneficiary-ECs in Samar, South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat.

The ASEP had been injected with a funding of P3.8 billion (or EUR66 million); and this development work is primarily targeting broader energization of far-flung and marginalized areas that had been deprived of electricity access for decades.

“With the grant, NPC implemented the installation of the four (4) 1-megawatt peak (MWp) greenfield solar PV power plants and linked them with the ECs’ distribution networks,” the government-owned firm said.

According to NPC, the completed projects had been funneled with P280 million (or equivalent EUR 4.6 million) worth of investments.

It specified that two of the plants connected to the distribution networks of South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II) and Sultan Kudarat Electric Cooperative (SUKELCO) had been switched on during the turnover ceremony on Thursday (August 31) in General Santos City in Mindanao.

The power company further indicated that the other two connected networks of Samar I  and II Electric Cooperatives (SAMELCO I and SAMELCO II) “should be switched on by the end of September 2023.”

NPC President and CEO Fernando Martin Y. Roxas articulated that their joint initiative with the EU and World Bank on providing energy access to remote sites via the utilization of solar PV technologies, “supports the government’s endeavors in full electrification and renewable energy scale-up.”

The EU, in particular, has stated that “the investments in solar energy will help make energy consumption in the target locations more environmentally sustainable, contribute to diversifying energy supply, and ultimately help mitigate climate change.”

As ASEP gathers pace on electrification targets, European Union Ambassador to the Philippines Luc Véron reaffirmed that “the European Union is committed to supporting the Philippines’ thrust to drive the clean energy transition agenda.”

On the funding extended for such initiative, the EU envoy emphasized that “working on the transition to a greener society and climate change mitigation is a global priority for the European Union, and it will also remain at the center of our cooperation efforts with the Philippines,” adding that this collaboration had been reinforced in a recent meeting between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen, during her recent visit to the country.

Further, Ndiame Diop, country director of the World Bank for Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand, noted that “this project exemplifies the World Bank’s commitment to promoting sustainable energy solutions for inclusive growth in the Philippines.”

In sum, Roxas conveyed that the completion of the solar projects manifests “fruitful collaboration” between NPC and its foreign development-partners; adding that apart from the power firm’s showcase of technical expertise, it also found  “inspiration in our own pursuit of renewable energy technologies.”