Big business comes together for solar power
The Philippine Solar Car Challenge Society, Inc. (PSCS) — the team behind SINAG, the Philippines’ first entry to the World Solar Challenge in Australia this October — is an unprecedented partnership of the country’s public and private sectors that has taken the country a step closer to making sustainable solar power an everyday reality.
This example of how cooperative efforts can benefit Philippine society and the environment is the product of the combined effort among the country’s top corporations, Ford Group Philippines, San Miguel Corp., Motolite, Shell, Sunpower, Philippine Airlines, Ventus, and the academe, namely, the students and faculty members of De La Salle University Manila.
Solar power, here and now
The basic elements of a decent solar power system have been on the local market for a long time now. In fact, thanks to public entities and private firms, hundreds of remote communities across the country are already using so-called “off-grid” solar power systems.
“Viable and sustainable solar power technology is available, here and now, but it’s still a bit expensive and beyond the reach of most consumers,” says PSCS spokesperson Vince Perez.
However, prices continue to decline as the technology improves and more manufacturers come into the market. Just as personal computers have become cheaper yet more powerful over the last two decades, the same is expected to happen with solar power technology. “It’s only a matter of time,” Perez adds.
The Philippine Energy Plan
In 2005, the DOE launched the Philippine Energy Plan, which aims to achieve a sustainable 60 percent self-sufficiency of energy and effective implementation of reforms in the power sector by 2010 and beyond.
In its 2006 Energy Plan update, the DOE emphasized the exploration, development, and use of indigenous and renewable energy, including solar energy, for renewable energy-based capacity to increase by 100 percent in ten years. The DOE projects an aggregate capacity of 548 megawatts from biomass, solar and energy wind sources by 2013.
Meanwhile, the passage of House Bill 1068, “An act to Promote the Development, Utilization, and Commercialization of Renewable Energy Sources,“ promises to boost renewable energy development through incentives to alternative energy developers, including mandatory generation, establishment of a trust fund, and priority dispatch for intermittent generation.
Moving forward with SINAG
For its part, the PSCS represents a concerted effort by some of the biggest names in Philippine business. By combining their skills and resources, the members of the PSCS, with the help of other sponsors, Aurora, Cabrera Lavadia and Associates, JWT, Creasia, Merritt Partners, Tuason Training School, Gochermann Solar Technology, and Stratworks, have shown that by working together, we as a country has what it takes to develop solar power as a viable renewable power source.
For the PSCS, SINAG is only the first step. It aims to launch and pursue other projects that will similarly spotlight the potentials of solar energy and the Filipino capacity to exploit to the benefit of the country. As a tropical country blessed with a year-round abundance of sunshine, the Philippines has much to gain from solar power: not only is it ideal for the archipelago’s many far-flung mountainous regions and islands, it also has the potential to free the country from its dependence on imported non-renewable energy sources.
For decades, solar power as a viable source of sustainable energy has been an elusive goal: the promise of a clean, pollution-free future always seemed just over the horizon. But for the people behind SINAG, the first Philippine entry to the World Solar Challenge in
SOLAR CAR SOCIETY: The Philippine Solar Car Challenge Society, Inc. Jimbo Borja, Rolando Estabillo, Rick Baker, executive director Bobby Kanapi, Dr. Carmelita Quebengco, treasurer Greg Reichow, chairman Vince Perez, Karlo Estavillo, secretary Tammy Lipana, and in-coming trustee Ramon Agustines.
- Latest
