The Philippines: A lot of islands, projects and potential

Philippines landscape

Having entered several new markets in Latin America in recent months, we are now expanding our presence in a very different part of the world: Southeast Asia. After having signed more than 50 projects in Vietnam, we feel it is time to expand our reach and support another country’s energy transition. Therefore, we are entering the Philippines as our third Southeast Asian markett.

Some crowdinvestors may remember that back in 2018, two projects in the island state were already available on the investment platform. At that time, however, these were not yet our own projects, but third-party projects. This time, things are different. Soon, we will start installing our first own solar projects and will start supporting the country’s transition towards a cleaner energy supply.

Reaching the goal with small steps

The Philippines has set ambitious goals for the sustainable development of its electricity market. By 2030, 35% of the electricity generated is to come from renewable sources, with an expected share of 50% in 2040. So far, electriticity coming from renewables sources accounts for only 20% of the total electricity generated – a clear sign that there is still a lot of catching up to do. The growth of renewables in the electricity mix is being held back by two main factors. On the one hand, the development of solar energy and wind energy is going far too slow. On the other hand, the country has been meeting the industry’s rising energy demand with an increase of fossil fuel based electricity generation.

Source: https://www.iea.org/countries/philippines

Instead of meeting the rising energy demand with renewables, the Philippines have started to rely more and more on coald and gas for their electricity generation. A policy that is now making it difficult for the island nation to meet its own climate targets. In addition, fossil fuels also entail financial disadvantages, A coal kWh currently costs the Philippine government almost up to twice as much as a kWh from solar power. A clear transition towards clean energy is therefore urgently needed.

Towards energy conservation in the building sector

The government of the Philippines does not just want to increase the share of renewables in the country’s energy mix, it also wants to focus on sustainability in the building sector. To this end, the government issued guidelines in 2020, requiring energy retrofits of existing public as well as private buildings. This also affects the country’s industry. Within three years time, all factories, warehouses and office buildings will have to be redeveloped as to meet the new energy standards.

With our solar-as-a-service solutions, we will therefore be able to not only help accelerate the clean energy transition, but also to support companies in their efforts to become more sustainable. By using solar energy for their buildings and factories, these companies both meet the new energy requirements while actively supporting the nationwide development of solar energy. With each new solar system, the Philippines will get one step closer to achieving its sustainability goals.

Thanks to the collaboration with our EPC partner Energy Lite, we will not enter the Philippine market with just one, but 5 signed projects. This way, we can kickstart our expansion into the South East Asian country and significantly strengthen our presence in the region.

Thuong Duong – Managing Director Vietnam

A strong partner

Logo Energy Lite

We are not entering the Philippines market alone, but together with our EPC partner Energy Lite. The cooperation between Energy Lite and us has been established by Apricum – The Cleantech Advisory, who laid the foundation for our strong partnership with the Southeast Asian EPC partner. Having already signed five projects in the Southeast Asian country with Energy Lite, we will be able to enter the market with a bang and show our dedication towards this new market. And there’s more. At the same time, we are already working on expanding the joint project pipeline, which could then comprise a total of up to 21 MW. There are exciting times ahead of us in the Philippines!

Solar energy in the Philippines for CCSO

The first project that we will tackle together with Energy Lite will benefit the family-run company CCSO. Thanks to its new solar system, the Philippine processing plant will soon be able to run its hall, cold storage and the plant’s own ice factory on clean electricity. Our second project is also already progressing fast, allowing us to strengthen our presence in the market and to support the development of the country’s energy transition step by step.

Visit the project page regularly and keep an eye out for the first campaigns for the Philippine projects. This way, you’ll make sure to not miss out on our market entry in the Philippines! Together, we can will be able to positively influence the country’s energy transition.