Town to have solar power plant

• Source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/local-news/2015/09/27/town-have-solar-power-plant-432712
• Sunday, September 27, 2015

By Flornisa M. Gitgano

STABLE power supply and employment opportunities await residents in Daanbantayan town following the groundbreaking ceremony of a 25-hectare solar power plant that will be constructed there.

The CeKO Solar Farm Systems Corp. will place 80,000 solar panels in a private property in Daanbantayan.

The groundbreaking was held last Friday headed by Daanbantayan Mayor Augusto Corro, Vice Mayor Gilberto Arrabis, Jr., CeKO Solar Chairman Yong Soo Lee, CeKO Solar Philippine President Jessie Tundag.

“The area is not agriculturally viable. It has flat terrain which is perfect for a solar farm,” Tundag said.

The construction of the solar power plant will be done immediately. It is expected to be operational in June 2016.

The solar panels will have a total power generation of 43,800 megawatts per year.

Its panels can last up to 30 years.

Among the advantages of the solar panels are stability of power supply, economic development, reduction of the effects of carbon dioxide, promotion of renewable energy and job opportunities.

Lee said the solar power plant in Daanbantayan will be one of the attractions of the municipality as this is the first in Cebu.

In Daanbantayan, Corro said the average consumption of the residents in his town is 2.5 megawatts per day.

Demand

He said the solar power plant will provide base load and additional power supply to Cebu considering that there is an increase of power demand.

Corro said the solar panels will generate power that will pass through the grid of National Grid Corp.

“The power that will be generated by the solar panel will pass through the grid. Cebeco and other power distributor can distribute this renewable energy,” he said.

The mayor said the construction of the power plant will be beneficial to them in terms of taxes and job opportunities.

Corro estimated that 200 to 300 residents in the town will be employed just for the construction and civil works alone.

Bulletin boards

Job hiring for the construction of the solar power plant will be placed in bulletin boards of Daanbantayan public employment service office or barangay halls.

“It would be very beneficial to us and to the country in terms of investment opportunities on renewable energy,” Corro said. For his part, Arrabis assured the investors that their investment will not be wasted.