By Alithea De Jesus
Solar energy company WeGen Philippines and its subsidiary WeGen Laudato Si’ (WGLS) today declared their full support to efforts of church-based and people’s organizations in Mindoro as they launched their campaign for immediate reforms and actions to address the energy crisis on the island.
In the virtual webinar that coincides with the celebration of the 6th anniversary of the encyclical Laudato Si’, the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan, power stakeholders, faith-based groups, government representatives, and clean energy advocates seek to find long term solution in the ongoing Mindoro Power Challenge that affects not only the economy but also the delivery of basic services in various area.
Spearheaded by the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan, Mindoro, Center for Energy, Ecology, NASSA-Caritas and the Global Catholic Community Ministries (GCCM), several issues were discussed in line with the lingering power challenge in their province.
To date, Mindoro continues to be plagued with power problems despite the presence of many electric power distributors. The island remains underserved and many communities still do not have access to stable electricity supplies. Power fluctuations are still common, and the impact on the lives of residents cannot be ignored.
President of WGLSI Charlie Ayco said that it lauds the efforts of the organizations in Mindoro and said that WeGen will do its best to help them find solutions to the island’s power challenges.
“We have done our research, and we know that there are better, more reliable solutions that can be implemented to solve the electricity supply problems in Mindoro,” he said.
According to Ayco, among Mindoro’s power problems are the following:
• Unreliable or insufficient power supply that results in frequent brownouts;
• High power cost for power consumers aside from the inconvenience and economic losses they incur from the brownout; and
• Environmental threat of coal plants if these are considered as an option.
“What Mindoro needs are a fast solution to the energy problem which can be acted upon by people in the communities themselves with the help and support of local decision-makers,” Ayco said. “We recommend that power consumers produce electricity for their own consumption through roof-mounted grid-tie or hybrid solar PV systems to reduce the load of the local electric cooperative and in the process stabilize the local grid.”
Ayco said that the households can install solar PV systems on their rooftop, connect all these systems and share to the grid the unused or excess electricity through the Net Metering System. This, Ayco pointed out, will stabilize the grid by reducing energy supply deficit.
The WeGen official also emphasized the importance of getting the community involved in the efforts to improve the power supply situation on the island.
(Graphic from WeGen)
“The people of Mindoro can easily participate in implementing solutions to the power problem on their island by calling on the local governments to sell or lease solar PV systems to residences and commercial buildings as a joint LGU-WeGen economic enterprise. This is certain to facilitate easier access and use of cheap solar energy and speed up implementation,” he said.
According to Ayco, installing solar PV systems in communities can be done without additional financial burden to the LGU by accessing government loan facilities. This, he said, will remove any project financing barrier.
“Instead of one large power plant to supply the electricity needs of Mindoro, hundreds of small solar installations which are integrated into one system through Net Metering can be built. This will remove concentration risk and it is more efficient,” he said.
He also that going for a community-based solar solution will definitely help the distant and isolated communities in Mindoro.
“Our approach can follow the ‘community solar’ concept wherein systems are owned by the Barangay Power Association (BAPA); the solar installation is shared by the community. The primary purpose of community solar is to allow members of a community the opportunity to share the benefits of solar power even if they cannot or prefer not to install solar panels on their property,” he explained.
Ayco pointed out LGUs should strengthen their efforts to implement the provisions of RA 11285 or the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act of 2019, specifically Section 8 that states that “All energy end users shall use every energy resource efficiently and promote the development and utilization of new and alternative energy efficient technologies and systems, including renewable energy technologies and systems across sectors in compliance with the declared policies of this act.”