Philippines first baseload solar farm launched

MANILA, Philippines — A P10-billion solar facility in Batangas, equipped with a large-scale battery storage system, has been activated by Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC).

President Marcos yesterday led the inauguration of Citicore Solar Batangas 1, which consists of a 197-megawatt-peak solar power plant, paired with a 320-MW-hour battery energy storage system (BESS).

CS Batangas 1 can power 158,000 homes and reduce carbon emissions by 265,000 tons annually, Marcos noted.

Solar panels generate electricity during the day, while the BESS dispatches excess energy at night or during peak demand, enabling round-the-clock delivery of clean power.

Located in Barangays Lumbangan and Luntal in the town of Tuy, CS Batangas 1 is the country’s first baseload-capable solar farm.

The facility can store and deliver energy beyond usual solar hours, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Solar power generation and agriculture are being combined by CREC using agrivoltaics, wherein crops are planted beneath and around solar panels, the President highlighted.

Agrivoltaics lessens land-use competition between agriculture and energy by maximizing land productivity, increasing farmers’ income and further enhancing food security, he said.

The CREC aims to achieve five gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030.

As for the country’s energy mix, the government aims to increase the share of renewables to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040.