WINNERGY Holdings Corp. commissioned last week a 10-kilowatt-peak (kWp) floating solar farm on Laguna Lake within Baras, Rizal province, the company said on Tuesday.
Winnergy said the project is the first floating solar farm in the Philippines, thus opening the possibility of using energy from the sun beyond the traditional ground-based and rooftop-mounted systems.
The company said it aims to show the technical feasibility of floating solar technology in the country. The technology involves deploying solar photovoltaic panels on the surface of a body of water.
In a statement, Winnergy President Janina Bonoan said one of the advantages of floating solar farms over ground-mounted solar facilities is that no farm or forest lands are used. No trees are required to be cut, she added.
“Floating solar farms also mitigate water evaporation and the proliferation of algae in the lake, and may help aquatic/marine life flourish,” the company said.
Ms. Bonoan said the project has the potential to improve the community and boost local tourism and economy.
She said floating solar farms are more technically efficient than ground-mounted projects because the cooling effect of the surrounding water on the panels makes the panels produce more energy.
Winnergy said the pilot project would provide free renewable energy to the municipality of Baras. The solar farm is equipped with a battery storage system that ensures a sustainable power flow.
Ahead of the solar farm’s commissioning, Winnergy along with the town and the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) signed on Aug. 14 a tripartite memorandum of agreement for the pilot project. — Victor V. Saulon
