Philippines' SPNEC starts building 500-MWp solar project at home

Solar Philippines Nueva Ecija Corporation (PSE:SPNEC) announced over the weekend that it has started construction of its 500-MWp Nueva Ecija solar farm in the namesake province in Central Luzon, Philippines.

As previously announced, the Philippine solar energy developer will use a portion of the proceeds from its recent PHP-2.7-billion (USD 53.7m/EUR 47.5m) initial public offering (IPO) to fund the installation of the first 50-MWp sub-phase of the project. The remainder of the funds would go towards building the interconnection for the full 500 MWp and land acquisition to expand the Nueva Ecija plant beyond that.

The first 50-MWp solar farm is slated to go online by the end of 2022, SPNEC said. The installation and commissioning of the second 175-MWp sub-phase and the remaining phases will follow successively.

SPNEC has been developing the Nueva Ecija scheme at the site since 2016. The company said last week that it plans to develop a 1000-hectare (2,471 acres) expansion of the project for a joint venture with a partner.

The existence of a huge solar farm in Nueva Ecija province, where demand for power is limited, will justify the construction of new transmission lines leading towards the Greater Manila Area, SPNEC then explained.

SPNEC is a stock market listed subsidiary of solar projects developer Solar Philippines.

(PHP 10 = USD 0.199/EUR 0.176)

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