Solenergy completes 2 rooftop solar power plants

MANILA, Philippines - Solenergy Systems Inc., a Philippines-based solar power system integrator, recently completed and commissioned rooftop power plants at the International School Manila (ISM) in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig and Kraft Foods (Mondelez International) in Parañaque Citty.

The systems, at 80kW and 100kW peak, respectively, provide three-phase power at the sites and reduce the dependency on utility-sourced power for the end-user at daytime.

“We believe these are the first of a kind for the Philippines, where a grid-tied solar power system has been justified based on the available return on investment, not necessarily its green credentials,” said Tom Peebles, CEO of Solenergy.

“Both clients had originally thought that a large system would be prohibitively expensive, given the previous quotations they had received. By working closely with component manufacturers and doing the design and fabrication ourselves though, we are definitely at a competitive price point with grid-sourced power, as these projects prove,” Peebles added.

The Kraft Foods power plant is located on its finished goods warehouse, a location that may offer additional benefits to the company, said Peebles.

“There have been studies published that show how a rooftop system can also lead to a significant reduction in a building’s cooling load. Not only are the solar panels converting a portion of the incident solar energy to usable power, they also create an insulating air gap above the roof, which will reduce the day time heat gain,” he said.

“For a company like Kraft, involved in perishable food production, this is another substantial benefit from the system,” he added.

Based on numerical simulation of the site and system configuration, Kraft will expect to offset upwards of 130 Mwh per year.

ISM presented a unique set of challenges that drew upon all of Solenergy’s resources and expertise.

“Not only did we have a very limited construction window, basically the school’s summer vacation, we also had to design a custom attachment detail that we could integrate in to the ongoing waterproofing treatment” said Peebles.

“Thankfully, we have our own in-house civil engineers and architects to handle such situations. We really try and view systems as multi-faceted design challenges, where we act as architect, civil and electrical engineer all at once,” he said.

Solenergy also designs and engineers a customized monitoring solution out of its offices in Makati and Pampanga.

“The monitoring solution is an essential component to ongoing system service and operation. It’s much like having a full time Solenergy engineer on site” said Peebles.

“It can take critical parameter readings on a predefined schedule, then run statistical analyses to assess whether or not certain aspects of the system may be underperforming. A lot of the time this is just about squeezing as much energy out of the system as possible, but it can also be invaluable for preventative maintenance and ensuring any issues can be resolved before they get a chance to escalate further. This aspect of the system is 100 percent locally designed and assembled also, something we are very proud of,” he said.

Solenergy is also working with the faculty of ISM to help integrate the rooftop system, through online monitoring, into the school curriculum, thus helping students understand how solar power can be utilized in providing an economical and carbon-free energy source

Solenergy Systems Inc. specializes in commercial and industrial solar power systems. For more information, visit www.solenergy.com.ph.