July 4 (Renewables Now) - British oil giant Shell Plc (LON:SHEL) and the green energy unit of nickel ore miner Nickel Asia Corp (NIKL:PHS) have formed a joint venture targeting to deploy up to 3 GW of renewable energy capacity in the Philippines.

The joint business of Shell Overseas Investments BV and Emerging Power Inc will start their endeavour with a goal to install 1 GW of capacity by 2028 and later scale up the project, Nickel Asia said in a bourse filing on Friday.

Initially, the partners will aim to develop, build, own and operate utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) parks but will also assess options for adding onshore wind and battery storage capacity.

According to the plan, Shell and Nickel Asia’s renewable energy subsidiary will roll out a series of projects on the islands of Luzon and Visayas. The partners noted that the joint initiative will enable them to explore synergies with retail electricity supplier Shell Energy Philippines Inc.

“This Shell-EPI partnership will leverage on Shell’s technical expertise and integrated solutions as a global energy company and EPI’s strong presence in the Philippines,” said Lorelie Q Osial, Country Chair of the Shell Companies in the Philippines.

Shell aims to double its annual power sales around the world to over 560 TWh by 2030. This is part of the group’s ambition to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050.

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