The mammoth Terra Solar project of SP New Energy Corporation (SPNEC) of the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) group which will command aggregate investment of P190 billion has secured ‘green lane certification’ from the Board of Investments (BOI) that will enable it to avail of fast-tracked and streamlined permitting processes for the project.

The solar farm facility, which delves with 3,500 megawatts of solar photovoltaic (PV) installations to be integrated with 4,500 megawatt-hours (MWh) of battery energy storage system (BESS), has definitive commercial operations date (COD) by early part of 2026; and the second phase shall be up for delivery in 2027.

Meralco PowerGen President and CEO Emmanuel V. Rubio indicated that the green lane certificate is a “recognition of our collective efforts to prioritize and fast track projects that will accelerate the country's low carbon transition—and this one is expected to deliver by February 2026.”

At its completion and commercial operations, the Terra solar farm facility will deliver 850MW of mid-merit capacity to parent firm-utility Meralco.

According to BOI Managing Head and Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo, the development of the Terra solar farm project of the Pangilinan-led conglomerate is all part of the country’s bid for a sustainable energy future – primarily in powering economic growth aspirations, including in the manufacturing sector.

“The basic objective of the Philippines now under this administration is not just to grow—we are already the fastest-growing economy in the region—but more importantly to transform the Philippine economy into a smart and sustainable hub for manufacturing and services, and exactly supporting that would be the sectors and industries that you are investing in,” the trade official stressed.

Rodolfo similarly noted that Terra Solar already applied for registration with the BOI for its application on securing warranted incentives for that particular renewable energy (RE) venture.

Company executives previously announced that the first phase of developments will be sited in Nueva Ecija and Bulacan – and these will have aggregate capacity of 1,600 megawatts plus energy storage coupling.

The Terra Solar project, which has been Meralco PowerGen’s acquisition from young businessman Leandro Leviste, is underpinned by a 20-year power supply agreement (PSA) that had been awarded by Meralco in 2022.

Meralco PowerGen is the power generation investment arm of the Meralco group; and SPNEC as corporate vehicle for Terra Solar project is one of its subsidiaries.

As could be culled from the project’s blueprint, its connection to the grid shall be supported by a 500-kilovolt (kV) transmission line along with integrated data and SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) systems.