PANGILINAN-LED SP New Energy Corp. (SPNEC) said it has decided to withdraw from its 280-megawatt (MW) solar power project in Santa Rosa, Nueva Ecija.
The company has formally asked the Department of Energy (DoE) to cancel the award it received for this project from the first round of Green Energy Auction (GEA), the company told the local bourse on Tuesday.
SPNEC President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel V. Rubio said that the company’s request to terminate the award mainly stemmed from transmission constraints, “which (are) beyond our control.”
“Our request remains subject, of course, to DoE approval and is well within the parameters established in GEA-1 guidelines,” he said in a Viber message.
“Having said that, SPNEC remains a committed partner of the government’s thrust to increase the share of RE (renewable energy) in the overall energy mix of the country, as we continue to assess and develop opportunities while we progress with the execution of our existing projects,” he added.
Energy Assistant Secretary Mylene C. Capongcol said that the department and the Green Energy Auction Committee are still evaluating the request of SPNEC.
Formerly Solar Philippines Nueva Ecija Corp., SPNEC’s primary purpose is to construct, operate, and maintain power-generating plants and related facilities for renewable energy.
SPNEC, along with its affiliates under its parent company Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc., won during GEA-1 in 2022, bagging most of the renewable energy capacities.
Other projects include the 200-MW Concepcion Tarlac 2 Solar Power Project and 450-MW Tayabas Solar Power Project of Solar Philippines Commercial Rooftop Projects, Inc., the 30-MW Calatagan Wind Power Project of Solar Philippines Calatagan Corp., and the 300-MW Kananga-Ormoc Solar Power Project of Solar Philippines Visayas Corp.
SPNEC is currently developing a P200-billion Terra Solar project, which is said to be the world’s largest solar power project.
The solar power project in Nueva Ecija and Bulacan consists of a 3,500-megawatt solar power plant and a 4,000-megawatt-hour energy storage system. It is expected to generate more than five billion kilowatt-hours of electricity yearly.
The first phase of the project is scheduled to be delivered by 2026, while Phase 2 is targeted for 2027.
SPNEC is controlled by the Pangilinan group through MGen Renewable Energy, Inc.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT, Inc.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
