Deal inked for 1.5-GW offshore wind projects

MANILA  -Offshore wind developer Triconti Windkraft Group has inked a partnership with Liechtenstein-based investor Sea Wind Holding AG for the development of two wind facilities in three provinces in Luzon and the Visayas to boost renewable power supply in the country.

According to Sea Wind, the Frontera offshore wind project, which will span Cavite and Bataan, and the Guimaras Strait project along the shores of Negros Occidental will have a combined capacity of 1.5 gigawatts (GW).

“This partnership leverages Sea Wind’s extensive know-how and experience in offshore wind development in Europe with Triconti’s deep local knowledge and strong network in the country. The offshore wind industry has the potential to create thousands of highly skilled jobs for Filipinos and build a new local industry,” said Lila Rosenberger, Triconti chief executive.

Sea Wind is a European company that invests in the development of wind energy projects, with a focus on offshore wind energy. Apart from Liechtenstein, it also has businesses in Germany and Poland.

Triconti, meanwhile, is a Filipino-Swiss joint venture that develops wind energy projects. It currently has a combined portfolio of 4 GW of onshore and offshore wind projects in the pipeline.

The added capacity is expected to deliver power to more than 1 million Filipino households and accelerate economic development, Sea Wind said.

READ: Gov’t awards 40 wind power service contracts

The two projects are among the largest offshore wind projects that are in the predevelopment stage in the Philippines, data from the Department of Energy (DOE) show.

As of August this year, Domhain Earth Corp.’s 3.1-GW Bulalacao offshore wind farm project in Oriental Mindoro province remains the largest in the country.

Triconti and Sea Wind did not disclose the timeline and investment amount needed for the two projects and only emphasized that these would help the government in reducing the Philippines’ dependence on fossil fuels through renewable energy.

READ: Philippines has potential for 21GW wind power by 2040 — World Bank

The World Bank projected in 2022 that the Philippines had a potential to develop 21 GW of offshore wind energy until 2040.

For its part, the DOE previously said it was looking at redeveloping nine ports in the country to serve as integration ports that would house materials needed for offshore wind development as it anticipates higher investor interest in the renewable energy technology.

The DOE has so far awarded 79 offshore wind service contracts with a potential capacity of 61.93 GW. INQ