PNOC, Aboitiz group to finish study for $40-M wind power proj

The PNOC-Energy Development Corp. (EDC) and the Aboitiz group are set to complete the feasibility study for a $40-million wind power project in Southern Philippines by the first quarter of 2004.

EDC chairman and president Sergio Apostol said the study will determine the feasibility of putting up the wind power project in other parts of the country such as the Visayas and Mindanao areas. The initial phase of the wind farm project will to be built in Ilocos Norte.

Among the areas being considered as possible sites for the two remaining phases of EDC’s wind power project include Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Davao, and Cebu.

For Phase I, the $120-million Northern Luzon wind power project (NLWPP) with a capacity of 42megawatts (MW), actual commissioning is scheduled in 2005. It is being financed by the Japanese government under the 4th special yen loan scheme amounting to ¥5.857 billion.

EDC is currently conducting various other feasibility studies being financed by other funding institutions like the Spanish and Danish governments for the last two phases of the wind project.

Based on a wind mapping study conducted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the United States, the Philippines has a potential wind power capacity of about 70,000-MW.

The Wind Energy Resources Atlas of the Philippines, prepared by the NREL, has identified possible sites for wind power projects aside from Ilocos Norte.

Among these areas include: Batanes; Busuanga and Cuyo Islands in Palawan; Casiguran and Polilio Islands in Quezon; Lubang Island in Mindoro Oriental; Marinduque; Masbate and Siquijor. Wind resources suitable for such project can also be found in Babuyan Island, Mindoro, Samar, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Eastern Mindanao and adjacent islands.