Yuchengco-led BKS energizes P1.8-B solar farm in Isabela

YUCHENGCO-LED BKS Green Energy Corp. said it expects to supply electricity to around 33,000 households annually after energizing a 40-megawatt (MW) solar farm in San Pablo, Isabela.

In a statement on Wednesday, BKS Green said it has switched on its first renewable energy project in the Cagayan Valley, which can generate about 59 gigawatt-hours of clean energy per year.

The P1.8-billion solar power plant uses 52,640 solar photovoltaic panels supplied by Chinese manufacturer Trina Solar.

The project was developed in two phases: a 6-MW Phase 1, which is connected to the Isabela Electric Cooperative II system, and a 34-MW Phase 2, which will connect to the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines’ 69-kilovolt Tuguegarao-Cabagan line through a dedicated transmission line.

BKS Green is a subsidiary of Rizal Green Energy Corp., a joint venture between PetroGreen Energy Corp. and Japan’s Taisei Corp. PetroGreen is the renewable energy arm of listed PetroEnergy Resources Corp.

“The current Middle East conflict highlights once more the absolute necessity of securing our country’s energy supply and reducing our dependence on imported energy sources,” PetroGreen President and Chief Executive Officer Francisco G. Delfin, Jr. said.

The Department of Energy has certified the solar power project as an energy project of national significance due to its contribution to economic growth.

PetroGreen currently operates four utility-scale solar projects across Tarlac, Bohol, and Nueva Ecija. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera