SunAsia, VinEnergo earmark $406M for floating solar projects
MANILA, Philippines – SunAsia Energy Inc. and Vietnam’s VinEnergo have earmarked $406-million capital to roll out solar projects on water developments in the Philippines.
In a joint statement on Thursday, the companies said the investments would involve the activation of a 422-megawatt-peak portfolio across Pampanga and Negros Occidental.
READ: SunAsia secures 10 contracts for solar farm
The investments would finance the three projects, envisioned to be among the first large-scale pile-mounted solar on water areas.
A technology dubbed “solar on stilts” would be used, with solar panels elevated on a concrete structure, allowing aquaculture and the cultivation of aquatic species.
Nearly 700,000 solar panels on stilts would be deployed.
They are eyed for commercial operations between 2027 and 2028.
“This partnership was born out of the shared resolve of SunAsia Energy and VinEnergo to advance energy security, support economic growth, improve the lives of our people, and help protect the planet,” said SunAsia Energy CEO and president Tetchi Capellan.
“Through Solar on Stilts, we are not only building renewable energy infrastructure; we are creating a model where food production and clean energy can grow together.”
Capellan even said that the tie-up provides “a compelling casefor integrated solar-aquaculture farming from both a farm productivity and energy cost perspective.”
SunAsia Energy is a homegrown renewable energy producer, with projects focused on floating solar and solar on water.
VinEnergo, meanwhile, committed to develop large-scale solar and wind power projects. It also plans to invest in battery energy storage systems to allow renewable producers to store excess power and release during peak hours.
Aside from the Philippines, the Vietnamese firm targets to fire up 100 gigawatts of clean electricity as it eyes other foreign markets, including North America, Northern Europe, the Mediterranean and Southeast Asia. /pai INQ
