The Department of Energy granted 64 offshore wind service contracts with a combined capacity of 50,678 megawatts, reflecting continued strong interest in the emerging technology.
DOE assistant secretary Mylene Capongcol said companies were interested in OSW “because of its huge potentials, new and emerging technology and strong government support for OSW development in terms of policies and renewable energy goals.”
OSW are situated in bodies of water which are said to have stronger wind potential than onshore wind projects. The DOE, with the support of the World Bank, launched the Philippine Offshore Wind Roadmap last year to take advantage of wind power potential of over 170,000 MW.
The move will help DOE achieve its target to bring the RE share in the power generation mix to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040 from 22 percent. The DOE signed on March 30 three OSW contracts with combined capacity of 2,000 MW and investment value of about $5 billion with Copenhagen Infrastructure New Markets Fund.