SPECIAL FEATURE: Sun powers island barangay

CEBU, Philippines - With the power shortfall being forecasted in Cebu in the next few years, will solar panels be a solution? For Department of Energy- 7 Director Antonio Labios, solar panel “is not practical” for the moment.

Labios said solar panels are costly unless the system is centralized.

“Pwede ang solar energy kung centralized. Kay kung dili, dako ang mabayran sa consumer (Solar energy can be possible if it is centralized but if not it would be costly for the consumer),” he said.

Based on the current rates, solar energy, if sourced out from power plants, costs P25-30 per kilowatt hour (kph) while electric companies, at present, only charge a minimal of P5-6/kwh to a household.

This cheap power is mainly from coal-fired power plants.

“So for now, we use solar panels in remote areas, those that are not within the grid,” he said. He, however, admitted that there are a number of households in the mainland, which are run by solar energy.

Gibitngil solar panels

In Barangay Gibitngil, an islet in the northern town of Medellin, households are energized using solar panels.

Randy Perez, member of the board of directors of Cebu Electric Cooperative (CEBECO) II, said at least 290 households in this remote barangay of Medellin have benefitted from this program.

Gibitngil is a 10-minute boat ride from the mainland, which makes it hard for Cebeco II to connect its power supply to the area. Perez said they have earlier proposed to put up generator sets in the area but it would mean slapping the islanders with at least P45/KPH. Of the 500 houses in the area, only about a few of these have generator sets. Some were earlier granted solar panels by the University of San Carlos while the rest used to rely only on gas lamps until the DOE gave P10-million grant to Gibitngil to purchase solar panels for its residents.

Since January at least 290 households in Gibitngil were energized.

“Sobra 25 ka tuig nako diri, karon lang gyud mi nakakita og TV (I had been here for more than twenty five years but it’s only now that we can watch tv),” said Elna Saplad, 50.

The installation of solar panels in each house is free of charge, but CEBECO II, being the implementing arm of the project, collects a monthly maintenance fee from the beneficiaries.

A 25-watt panel, which can light two compact fluorescent light bulbs, is P120 per month; while the 50-watt is P220 and the 75-watt is P320.

Edna’s house has one 14-inch colored TV, three bulbs and an outlet for mobile phone charging.

Leo Dungog’s family subscribed to the 25-watt package, in which, he said is enough to light two CFL bulbs, one in their living room-cum-kitchen and the other in their sleeping room.

Leo, a fisherman, said the project is a blessing to them because they no longer have to buy batteries for their transistor radio. In remote areas like Gibitngil, listening to radio dramas is a hobby to most residents.

Rainy days, however, do not give them enough light in the evening, yet they still have a single bulb flickering during the night, he said.

As to the monthly fees, Leo considered it “minimal,” considering that they do not have to pay more if their power use goes up.

For Medellin Mayor Ricardo Ramirez solar power is “very cheap”. In fact, Ramirez himself has subscribed from CEBECO II five sets of solar panels for the use of their local offices. He also encouraged private households to adopt this technology, apart from the fact that it’s environment-friendly.

Cora Canga, manager of Solar Star—a Cebu-based distributor of solar panels, said solar energy is expensive but only at the start. She said solar panels can last up to 30 years.

Based on Solar Star’s rates, a 10-watt panel, which can light a single bulb costs P2,200; a 500-watt panel set, which can energize an ordinary household with a refrigerator, a TV set, a radio and some bulbs, costs P197,000.

Conga said they already have a number of clients in Cebu City but they have more in Mindanao or in areas unreached by the government’s electrification projects.

“Solar energy is reliable even if there is no sun and it is guaranteed no brownout,” she said.—(FREEMAN)