$100-M ADB loan eyed for solar rooftop projects

The Asian Development Bank may allocate some $100 million (about P4.3 billion) for lending to local building owners who will install solar panels on their rooftops, similar to what ADB did in its 20-year-old headquarters in Ortigas.

At the launching of ADB’s solar rooftop project recently, Seethapathy Chander, director general of ADB’s regional and sustainable development department, said he was expecting the number of solar panel installations to increase after the Manila-based lender showed how this could be an economically and environmentally viable business proposition.

ADB’s own solar project involved the installation 2,040 photovoltaic panels on the roof of ADB’s main building. These panels have a capacity of 571 kilowatts (about half a megawatt) and will be generating 613 megawatt-hours of electricity a year, which can be used to run a portion of the ADB’s air conditioning, lighting and computer systems. It will also reduce its carbon footprint.

The capacity to be generated by ADB is enough to provide energy to 245 families, assuming that the average family in Metro Manila uses 2,500 kilowatt-hours (kWh) yearly.

Chander noted that for this year alone, solar rooftop projects may be able to generate a combined 15 MW. For next year, the installations of solar panels on rooftops are expected to further generate another 100 MW.

“Using rooftops and other open spaces is an efficient way for businesses and homes to capture and use the energy of the sun. We hope other companies will follow ADB’s example,” Chander said.