Philippines commits to climate change with rise of its largest solar park

The growing demand for new solar power plants is leading to a scarcity of land 

The Philippines will develop the largest solar park in Nueva Ecija in the coming years, boosting the country’s renewable energy sources, reported Philippine News Agency.  

Solar Philippines announced that it is establishing the Solar Energy Zones, Inc. (SEZ) to host solar power projects in its 10,000 hectares of land in Batangas, Nueva Ecija, and Tarlac.  

Leandro Leviste, founder of Solar Philippines, said there is currently a scarcity of land to develop the projects due to the growing demand for new solar power plants.  

Leviste noted that SEZ is inspired by solar parks in India, in which companies can co-locate for their solar projects. 

“Our aim is no longer to compete with the country’s power companies, but to enable them to build projects, to ensure that solar soon becomes the largest source of new energy in the Philippines,” he said. 

Moreover, Leviste added that SEZ will assist firms in building large-scale solar farms.  

“Now the power industry is convinced that it is, we are making available these sites to help others enter the market,” he said. 

SEZ will also soon announce future locators that will be constructing their solar projects in the next five years.  

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The Department of Energy (DOE) hopes that the country expands its renewable energy resources in the current and future administrations. Their data reveals that between 2016 and 2020, around 7,399 megawatts of clean energy have been installed.  

Alfonso Cusi, secretary at DOE, said promoting renewable energy is part of the country’s commitment to the Paris Agreement on climate change.