PowerSource First Bulacan Solar Inc., a consortium composed of Meralco PowerGen Corp. and its partners, plans to start construction of a 50-megawatt solar power project in San Miguel, Bulacan this month.
“We had to wait for government approvals including LGU construction permit which we got only last working day of 2019. We should see actual mobilization by 2020,” Meralco PowerGen president Rogelio Singson said.
Meralco PowerGen, through renewable energy unit MGEN Renewable Energy Inc. (Mgreen), has taken a 40-percent stake in PFBSI, which is developing the P4.25-billion solar plant in Bulacan.
Meralco PowerGen is the power generation unit of Manila Electric Co., the country’s biggest retailer of electricity.
PFBSI was initially looking at starting construction works in the first quarter of 2019, with completion and commissioning by the fourth quarter this year.
PFBSI has an Energy Regulatory Commission-approved power supply agreement with Meralco for the entire output of the project over a period of 20 years at a fixed price, subject to an annual escalation cost.
“We are committed to undertake 1,000 MW of renewable energy projects in the next five to seven years. This start is one of the lego pieces that will make a thousand,” Singson said earlier.
PFBSI signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract with SUMEC Complete Equipment & Engineering Co. Ltd. for the solar power project.
Aside from MGreen, other shareholders of PFBSI are PowerSource Global Holdings Corp. (40 percent) and Singapore’s Sunseap International Pte. Ltd. (20 percent).
MGreen plans to develop large-scale solar, wind and hydropower projects that will provide reliable, environment-friendly power at competitive prices without the need for subsidy.
The company plans to put up a 110-megawatt floating solar project in Laguna Lake. It is also looking at other floating solar projects around the country.