Philippines’ Government Consulting Industry on Offshore Wind Development

The Philippines’ Department of Energy (DOE) aims to collaborate with the Carbon Trust and the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) to unlock the country’s offshore wind potential.

The DOE held a virtual workshop on 21 July to determine how the Philippine government and the wind industry could jointly work on realising the country’s massive offshore wind potential.

With the Carbon Trust and GWEC, the DOE aims to collaborate on bringing in industrial viewpoints and expertise that are critical for market development and fostering a sound environment for partnerships. 

Through the recently held workshop, the DOE Renewable Energy Management Bureau was looking how to secure a more robust investment environment for the Philippine wind sector and to identify challenges for the deployment of offshore wind technology off the country’s coasts.

The challenges that were recognised include marine spatial planning and enhancing capabilities to address technical challenges for floating wind applications, turbine operations in challenging conditions, and the necessary grid reinforcements in realising the full potential of offshore wind in the Philippines. 

“Harnessing our wind energy resources would open up a limitless resource of reliable and indigenous clean energy, bringing us closer to our energy security and sustainability goals. This development would also redound to the benefit of Filipinos through job generation, public health benefits, and the influx of significant inward capital investment”, Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi said. 

While the Philippines is still in the early stages of its offshore wind journey, the Department of Energy had already awarded development rights to initial projects in the northern and central areas of the country, the DOE said.

The awarded projects include Guimaras Strait Wind Power Project, Aparri Bay Wind Power Project, Guimaras Strait II Wind Project, Frontera Bay WPP, and San Miguel Bay WPP with the combined potential capacity of 5 GW.

Last month, the DOE also launched the Philippine Offshore Wind Roadmap project.

Funded through the World Bank Group’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP), the project aims to identify areas in the Philippines with high potential for offshore wind development.

The roadmap will also establish short and long-term offshore wind targets, formulate strategies to successfully integrate offshore wind in the government’s renewable energy portfolio, and put forth recommendations on policies that are necessary to foster a conducive business environment for offshore wind investors.