Big groups eye Philippine green power auction

FILE PHOTO: Department of Energy (DOE) facade. Images from DOE / INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The government has taken another step closer to its goal of accelerating renewable energy deployment in the country, as nearly 150 players were qualified to bid for the fourth round of green energy auction (GEA-4).

In a document posted on its website on Thursday, the Department of Energy (DOE) said it had received more than 200 bids from a total of 142 companies.

Among the notable bidders are Ang-led San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp., Ayala-led ACEN Corp., Aboitiz Power Corp., Lopez-led First Gen Corp., Alternergy Holdings Corp., Saavedra-led Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC), Basic Energy Corp., NexGen Energy Corp. and PetroEnergy Resources Corp.

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CREC alone submitted 29 bids, although its committed capacities and the technologies it proposed were not provided.

The agency did not note the total capacities GEA-4 attracted from bidders.

“The selected companies have demonstrated the technical, legal, and financial capabilities necessary to participate and contribute to the Philippines’ long-term clean energy targets,” the DOE said in a statement.

READ: CREC sets over $1-B capex for first gigawatt goal

First bidding to incorporate storage

The new round of green power bidding is the first to include an integrated renewable energy and energy storage system (IRESS). Aside from this, the GEA-4 with more than 10 gigawatts capacity available will also include ground-mounted solar, roof-mounted solar, floating solar, and onshore wind.

Commercial operations of the committed projects are targeted to begin from 2026 to 2029.

The green energy auction program is an initiative designed to boost the renewable energy market, supporting the current administration’s target to scale up the renewables share in the power generation mix to 35 percent by 2030. At present, its share is only at 22 percent.

In a message to Inquirer, Mylene Capongcol, director of the Renewable Energy Management Bureau of the DOE, said the agency is not seeing any delays for the fourth and fifth rounds of the green energy auction with the recent leadership changes in the Energy Regulatory Commission.

READ: Philippines eyes 3,300 MW of wind capacity under new green power auction