Availability of renewables seen driving data center investment interest — DICT

THE Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said the availability of renewable energy will loom large in the investment criteria of data-center companies as prices of fossil fuels turn volatile.

Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Rhoel R. Aguda said: “Ayaw ng mga data center ng fossil fuel (the data center industry will not bet on fossil fuels). Marami tayong solar (we have a lot of solar power), so all the more they will come to us,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Anti-Red Tape Authority 3rd Telco Forum on Monday.

“A lot of them will look for other data center locations, so they might move to the Philippines,” he added.

The Philippines currently has an energy mix of 26% renewable, though its power grid remains heavily dependent on coal and gas.

He added that the viability of the Philippines has been enhanced by its fiber optic cable connections.

“Meta is already crossing the Philippines through the bypass,” he said, referring to Facebook parent Meta Platforms, Inc. “Two more of the major operators are going to go through the Philippines. So soon, the three household names that provide our social media platforms will go through the Philippines,” he added.

He added that the Philippines is due to release a harmonized data sovereignty law and the data embassy policy, which are meant to incentivize local industries that locate in the country.

For its part, ARTA said the Asian Development Bank has completed a study on streamlining approval processes in the digital infrastructure and renewable energy industries.

“The study is already completed, we are already in the implementation phase,” ARTA Secretary Ernesto V. Perez told reporters.

“Of course, our target is within the year we should implement. The most effective way to implement it through the provincial one-stop shops. The big challenge (to streamlining) is at the local government unit level,” he added.

He said that he required the eight regional offices of ARTA to have at least one provincial one-stop shop this year. — Justine Irish D. Tabile