CREC, San Miguel to complete 153.5-MW solar plant by 2026


Renewable energy firm Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC) and San Miguel Global Light and Power Corp. (SGLP) plan to complete their solar plant project by 2026, with construction commencing this year.

In a briefing, Oliver Tan, CREC president said that the 153.5-megawatt (MW) solar power project in Mariveles, Bataan, is set to break ground in the first quarter of 2025.

He also expressed interest in joining the Green Energy Auction (GEA) in the near future.

“We’re doing the design now, so the target to break ground is maybe in the first quarter of this year,” he told reporters. “This is the first [project with SGLP]. We hope that if it’s successful, both parties are happy, we hope that it will continue to the next and the next.”

With a previously estimated cost of P6 billion, CREC aims to complete the solar power development within a year of breaking ground.

Once construction starts, CREC will subscribe to additional shares to boost its attributable solar energy capacity and stay on track with its 1 gigawatt-per-year capacity goal for the next five years.

This partnership will add 76.75 MW of attributable capacity to the firm’s solar power portfolio.

Tan also shared his support for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) fourth round of GEA (GEA-4), which covers Integrated Renewable Energy and Energy Storage System (IRESS).

“We’re there to support the DOE for round 4… [Since we have] the joint venture with San Miguel, they would be the off-taker [for the auction].”

According to SGLP, its existing Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) portfolio consists of 1,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) across the country. Most installations are now operating and secured ancillary service agreements in 2023.

SGLP currently has a diverse power portfolio, which includes natural gas, coal, and other renewable energy technologies like hydroelectric power.

The San Miguel power firm manages production in Pangasinan, including the 1,000 MW Sual coal thermal power plant and the 345 MW San Roque hydroelectric power plant.