Recycling wins it for Negros school

By Tarra Quismundo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
5:16 am | Sunday, December 11th, 2011

MANILA, Philippines—For teaching an entire community how to dispose of its garbage properly and more responsibly, a Negros Occidental school topped this year’s National Search for Sustainable and Eco-friendly Schools, elementary level.

Iliranan Elementary School in San Carlos City bested some 45 regional winners from across the country in the second year of the competition.

The Camarines Sur National High School and De La Salle University-Dasmariñas were first in the high school and college categories, respectively.

The annual search for the most eco-friendly schools is conducted by the Departments of Education and Environment and Natural Resources, Commission on Higher Education and Smart Communications.

“What set us apart from other schools is that we are reaching out to the community and (are regularly monitoring and evaluating the program) to achieve our project’s goals and to guarantee its sustainability,” said Iliranan head teacher Jessie Batosin in a statement.

Iliranan initiated earlier this year a solid waste management system that extended beyond its campus.

Partnering with village leaders, the school helped community residents change their habit of dumping their garbage in open pits or burning the trash.

The school taught and led the community in practicing waste segregation and recycling.  Teachers and village coordinators also worked together to monitor how households managed their trash.

“A household that practices open burning and open dumping is given a chance to change its ways within a three-month period. After three months (without any) sign of behavior change, the council invokes the solid waste management ordinance and the no-garbage collection policy is strictly enforced,” Batosin said.

http://bit.ly/vBkYJ6

Korea Water to introduce floating solar power in Phl

By Donnabelle L. Gatdula (The Philippine Star) Updated December 10, 2011 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Korea Water Resources Corp. (K-Water) is investing about $60 million to introduce the floating solar power system (FSPS) in the Philippines.

Jiheun Yun, K-Water representative in the Philippines, told reporters that they plan to start with a maximum of 10 megawatts (MW) of FSPS in Angat Dam.

He said the company will conduct a feasibility study early next year, to be completed within six months, to prepare for the construction of the FSPS which normally takes six months.

K-Water introduced FSPS installed in a water reservoir in South Korea last year. The same technology has been in use in Europe and the US for the past 10 years.

“This is the first time that FSPS will be constructed within a water reservoir. In Europe and the US, where there are similar projects, are being installed in ocean and/or river,” he said.

The technology involves setting up solar panels in a reservoir that not only produces a higher power output but also creates an ideal environment for fish spawning since it constrains green algae.

K-Water, Yun said, is replicating the technology overseas after fine-tuning it in Korea.
He said K-Water decided to put the FSPS in a water reservoir as this will complement their existing businesses.

“We will study if we can put it in Angat and in other dams - San Roque, Casecnan or CBK,” he said.

The K-Water official assured that based on their experience in Korea, putting a power plant in a reservoir will have no environmental impact on the water facility.

“The technology has been proven to be safe,”Yun said, when asked if the facility will not contaminate the water reservoir as this is a main source of the country’s drinking water.

As the initial phase’s capacity is small, Yun said they plan to sell the power to be generated from the FSPS to private companies.

The investment in FSPS, he said, forms part of the $1 billion K-Water intends to invest in the power sector in the next three years.

The state-run K-Water is engaged in the construction, operation and management of multi-purpose dams and multi-regional/local water supply systems.

Founded in1967, K-Water contributed to the growth of the Korean economy and the improvement of the public welfare by implementing water resources development projects and managing these resources.

http://bit.ly/uMbQec

Wasted billion

Editorial

Philippine Daily Inquirer 
1:34 am | Saturday, November 12th, 2011

It is a big letdown, to be sure. And another example of the Arroyo administration’s extravagant and reckless handling of people’s money. For how else would one describe a huge government investment that, after two years, shows nothing by way of results?

A few days ago, Energy Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras revealed that the government lost a P1-billion allocation earmarked for the production of jatropha. Before that Almendras announced that the state-owned PNOC Alternative Fuels Corp. (PNOC-AFC) was abandoning its jatropha program, after it found that the plant was not commercially viable.

Jatropha used to be a little-known plant of little value. But when word spread that it was a rich source of biofuel and, unlike food-based biofuel sources, it was non-edible,  “drought-tolerant,” growing on barren lands and needing little tending, environmentalists and the energy world went agog over it. More so because the good news came amid soaring oil prices (that signaled, some said, the end of cheap fossil fuel), worsening pollution woes and a looming world food crisis.

A number countries, like Brazil and the United States, were then already into production of environment-friendly biofuels. But their success with bioethanol, which is largely produced from food crops (e.g., corn, sugar, cassava), soon unearthed a downside: while providing higher income to farmers, the industry competed with food production, eating into agricultural lands and thus diverting, as a Time magazine put it, “too many crops from too many mouths.”

Against this backdrop, jatropha was hailed as a “dream fuel.” Jatropha thus easily became a “craze” in a number of countries. India, China and Kenya, to name a few, set aside thousands of hectares of land for jatropha cultivation. By December 2008, Air New Zealand had successfully test-flown a Boeing 747 “using a 50-50 blend of jatropha and aviation fuel.” In 2009, then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo released P1 billion for the jatropha project.

It was not the first time that the Philippines was venturing into jatropha “development.” In 2007, PNOC-AFC started putting up jatropha nurseries, inked several agreements with potential jatropha investors, and entered into a P10-billion financing contract with the LandBank for jatropha projects. It continued networking and forging partnerships the following year to boost interest in the jatropha industry. And in 2009 and 2010, it went into agreements for the development of jatropha plantations.

It is not the P1-billion investment itself, or its judiciousness, that is raising eyebrows now. It is how such a huge amount of public money was rashly spent. “The proper scientific protocol in programs involving new technologies is to first conduct a pilot test and a thorough evaluation of its results to prove its viability before rolling it out,” Science Secretary Mario Montejo said, as he questioned the Arroyo administration’s decision to go into large-scale jatropha production. Almendras said the P1 billion lost just “covered the cost of planting some 4,000 hectares to jatropha.” How many billions more could have been lost or wasted in the other stages of jatropha’s project development?

Some jatropha investors, like Trans-Asia Renewable Energy Corp., quickly opted out of the project. Francisco Viray, Trans-Asia president, said their efforts to produce biofuel from a plantation of jatropha in Laguna failed to reach commercial quantity. “We found out early in the game that there are some problems on the agricultural side,” Viray said, noting that contrary to popular belief, jatropha requires a lot of water.

This finding jibes with a 2009 findings of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that showed jatropha actually “used more water per gallon of biofuel than many other biofuel crops.” And this fact alone should have given pause to a responsible government before going all-out in promoting jatropha.

Even then, there were enough lessons to learn from other countries where similar undertakings were failing. In Kenya, for example, scientists noted that there was “no proven, widely disseminated method for growing jatropha properly.”

Did the government look at these basic issues before going on a spending spree to promote jatropha? Was the jatropha project really a serious investment made by the Arroyo administration, or just another excuse to fill some private pockets?

Something smells here. An investigation is in order.

http://opinion.inquirer.net/17099/wasted-billion

 

Jatropha project bombs

Philippine Daily Inquirer
3:53 am | Monday, November 7th, 2011

Science and Technology Secretary Mario Montejo.
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) said the Arroyo administration should have pilot-tested its jatropha plant project before launching a large-scale exploration of the plant’s viability as an alternative fuel source.

Science Secretary Mario Montejo said the past administration should have started small—from planting and harvesting to extracting jatropha oil and blending it into biofuel.

“A successful pilot testing of jatropha’s viability as an alternative fuel source should have been conducted before going into large-scale production,” Montejo said in a statement.

“The proper scientific protocol in programs involving new technologies is to first conduct a pilot test and a thorough evaluation of its results to prove its viability before rolling it out,” Montejo said.

Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras recently revealed the Arroyo administration lost P1 billion of a P1.4-billion allocation for the project, covering the cost of planting some 4,000 hectares to the jatropha plant.

It turned out jatropha plant oil was not commercially viable. Tarra Quismundo

Pinoy-designed e-sports car gets D.O.E. support

Tuesday, 01 November 2011 21:17 Paul Anthony A. Isla / Reporter

THE Department of Energy (DOE) will support the Filipino-designed Gitano (GT111) electric sports car to promote vehicles using alternative fuel.

The Gitano electric sports car is hoped to make waves in the European motoring scene.

In a letter to Jan Kierulf, Michel Motorsport president and Gitano designer, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said: “It is a source of pride that our country is helping to lead the electric-vehicle movement. As we informed you during our meetings, it is part of the DOE’s policy to support the development of the local electric-vehicle manufacturing industry. As such, we fully support your plan to cause the manufacture of high-quality electric vehicles.”

The GT111 is now in Las Vegas for the Special Equipment Market Association Show from November 1 to 4. The trade show will feature more than 1,500 customized and accessorized four-wheel and two-wheel vehicles from all over the world.

Kierulf said having a Filipino-designed electric sports car showcased at the Las Vegas show is a huge opportunity for the Philippines to show the country’s design talent, creativity and craftsmanship.

With the right support in place, Kierulf said the Philippines has the potential to become the “Milan of Asia” in the area of vehicle design.

He said the country’s competency in the design arena had been largely untapped in the vehicle sector. “There is an urgency for local companies, such as Michel Motorsport, to step up to the plate and show the world what Filipinos are capable of in terms of conceptualization and design,” he said.

At Michel Motorsport, Kierulf said they do everything from auto business incubation, engineering design, product development, prototype fabrication, and specialty low-volume production services for the mass transport, auto and architecture sectors.

Kierulf said the company’s competencies are in styling, engineering and conceptual design, which are done by Filipinos.

The GT111 is a joint effort among Michel Motorsport for the concept, design, pre-engineering activities and business planning, a British company for the chassis, suspension and vehicle standards, and US-based EV Drive Oregon for the electric power train development.

Initially developed as a “halo project” or an initiative to create awareness and attract investor attention, the GT111 concept car is planned to be produced in commercial quantities and sold in the European market.

 http://bit.ly/teIn95

Capitol to switch to LED lights

Cebu Daily News
7:38 am | Tuesday, November 1st, 2011

THE Capitol is also adopting the use of LED (light emitting diodes) bulbs in all its offices to save on energy costs.

Provincial Engineer Eulogio Pelayre said that the Capitol was aiming to replace all ceiling lights with energy efficient lights.

However, Pelayre said they had yet to find the best quality producer of LED lights.

“The investment cost is high. The purchase price is also high, P200 for flourescent compared to the P800 for the LED lights but the difference is, you could save up 80 percent in your electric consumption),” he said in Cebuano.

The plan is to install LED lights before Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia’s term ends in 2013.
“We are scouting for the best product available since this is a new product. We have to be careful in purchasing them,” he said in Cebuano.

The lighted Capitol building from the outside formerly uses sodium lamp.

Now, it uses LED bulbs, which will allow the Capitol to save 70 percent in its power bills.
Pelayre said there would be no maintenance or replacement of the bulbs needed in the next 15 years at least.

This is because of the program of the Capitol together with Philips Lighting, which provided the bulbs and would maintain them./Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/86337/capitol-to-switch-to-led-lights

Feed-in-tariffs on renewable energy seen to benefit consumers

By: Amy R. Remo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
2:59 am | Saturday, October 22nd, 2011

The controversial feed-in-tariff rates may be more beneficial for consumers in the long run as these will insulate them from the continued spikes in the prices of coal, according to World Bank investment arm International Finance Corp.

“People look at the feed-in-tariff as a cost but it should also be looked at as a differential. Right now renewable energy is expensive, but over time that may not be the case,” IFC Philippines resident representative Jesse O. Ang told reporters.

“Because coal and oil prices will go up and the FIT is set, eventually, the FIT will become not just a negative differential but a positive differential. Renewable energy will become cheaper than fossil fuels,” Ang said.

FIT rates referred to the guaranteed price at which RE developers will be paid for the energy that they will produce. It is a mechanism that is awaited by developers as the rates that will be set will determine the viability of their projects.

However, certain quarters raised fear that this mechanism might raise further jack up the cost of electricity in the country via a universal levy called FIT-allowance. At present, the petition for the implementation of the FIT rates remained pending at the Energy Regulatory Commission.

Based on the petition, the FIT-allowance was estimated at about 10.50 centavos per kilowatt-hour.

According to Ang, the IFC is willing to help finance some of the renewable energy projects. However, he admitted that it might be constrained by the final FIT rates that would be issued.

“We’ve been talking to renewable energy players and we’re certainly interested in helping them, but everybody’s waiting for the FIT rates. The sooner they can decide on the FIT at whatever form, the better,” Ang further said.

National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) Chair Pedro Maniego Jr. recently said the use of these clean resources for power generation could even result in as much as P130 billion in net savings over a 20-year period, despite the imposition of FIT rates and the collection of FIT-allowance.

Maniego earlier said the implementation of the FIT rates would benefit the consumers in the form of reduced average power rates, as the so-called avoided cost would be higher than the proposed FIT rates.

http://bit.ly/mT7Yq6

Mapua’s ‘Siklab’ exalts Filipinos’ creativity, innovativeness

Published : Sunday, October 16, 2011 00:00
Written by : Josef T. Ramos , Correspondent



MOTIVATED by great ambition to pursue a higher goal, five young mechanical engineering students from Mapua Institute of Technology have shown the entire world how good Filipinos are in terms of creation, competition and technological innovation.

Team “Siklab,” composed of Matthew Mamangun, Ken Erick Naval, Jeremaine Lampitoc, Jerick Apetrior, Justin David Villegas and Jaylord Jauod, surprised all their competitors in the 2011 Bosch Power Tool Asia Cordless Race Finals tournament held on September 21 to 23 in Beijing, China.

After capturing the Bosch Cordless Race 2011 Philippine Leg crown and the Best Kart Design award, Siklab didn’t waste any opportunity when it represented the country in that Asian level competition by winning the third place honor and the Asia’s Best Design Award.

The five promising students, who are inspired by Bosch’s cordless power tools, have taken the challenge to assemble and design a go-kart powered by Bosch’s high-tech cordless lithium ion power tools to prove the world that Filipinos are among the brightest mechanical engineers.

“There are many good Filipino inventors in our country right now but they are not properly supported by the government,” Siklab team leader Mamangun, a graduating student, told The Sunday Times Magazine in an interview on October 14 at the Bosch Office in Fort Legend Building in Bonifacio Global City. 

“I guess this is the right opportunity to tell them to support the Filipino inventors.”

In terms of development and promotion of electric-powered car and the green technology in vehicles, Mamangun emphasizes that it is already familiar with most countries particularly in Japan and some European nations.

“There’s nothing new in ‘green technology’ most countries are using it by now,” he said. “Filipinos can do it as well [in terms of inventing an electric powered car], but you are talking of millions here if once the government decides to implement and support this.”   

Siklab
Siklab placed third overall behind overall champion Thailand (1’47” 127) and second place host China (1’ 53” 841) with a time of one minute 57 seconds” 841 at the Juyongguan Great Wall Open Space in
Beijing, China.

Despite being a third placer in the race, the Filipinos gained respect from the crowd, according to Mamangun. The Filipinos amazingly outraced Malaysia and highly favored South Korea.

“We could win the overall title during the event if only timing and luck we’re on our side. We got a good kart design,” said Naval, who is the smallest guy in the group who can fit inside the kart. “If given a chance again, we’re going to win the overall title since we know what to do now.”

Before earning a Beijing ticket to represent the Philippines in the Asian race event, Mapúa dominated the Philippine leg at the Boomland Kart Track in May inside the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex in Pasay City with a 57.437 time record.

Finishing second and third respectively were University of the Philippines (UP) (1:04.709) and University of San Carlos Cebu (1:06.892).

Mapua also received P100, 000 besides qualifying in the Beijing race.

The other teams that competed in the Philippine leg were University of Mindanao, Colegio de San Juan de Letran Manila, Don Bosco Mandaluyong and Rizal Technological University.
For placing second in the Philippine leg, UP also qualified in the Asian Bosch Cordless race and finished seventh overall with 2’17” 628 time.

For winning the best kart design, Siklab also took home 1000 Euros and new Bosch Power Tools.
Mamangun said the Siklab Kart had “no gear box” unlike any other participating go-karts during the Beijing race since the race track wasn’t that wide and long.

“We have a good acceleration and gear box isn’t advisable to a short race track,” he said when asked by one reporter in China.   

‘Thankful’
Mamangun, 21, and his members are so thankful to their classmates, relatives, friends for the all-out support. They appreciate the Bosch Philippines’ support too in their campaign during the race by providing all the tools and gadgets they needed.

“Our parents and some classmates even went there in China to cheer for us,” he said. “It’s really motivating when they cheered for you. They inspired us and we just wanted them to be happy.”

Jerick Apetrior, 19, the youngest among the boys, who was in charge for safety and finance, said their team would win the overall title if given another chance to compete in the same tournament for the next two years or even next year.

But that is impossible to happen since all teammates are all graduating students this year and the next Asian Bosch Cordless Race may happen in 2013.

“Thailand did it absolutely right. They are very good in automobile works and good technology,” said Apetrior. “At the same time, they performed well during the race. But if given another chance, we’ll assure anybody that we will bring home the overall title.”

Chief mechanic Jeremaine Lampitoc, however, keeps telling the technology of Thailand and China isn’t that far advance compared to them since their time gaps weren’t that far. “They had mistakes too during the race, but those were not enough to hold them off.”    

Lampitoc says everybody contributed well in the team and did their part. “We prepared hard for this and we’re so thankful that our hard work had paid off well. What important now is we can write
something big in our resume when we apply for work.”

Although adviser Jaylord Jauod and logistic head Justin Villegas were not around during the interview because they attended some important matters, their teammates said they shared valuable contributions too during the race.  

School pride
A few weeks after their arrival from Beijing, China, the Mapua students have proven that real school pride comes from academic achievements and not only from recreational or achievements in sports, which are very popular since then.  

“It’s not only the sports that give pride and popularity to a school,” said the fifth year Naval. “We like to clarify that academic achievements remain the most important and higher accomplishment a student can bring to his own school.”

William Go, the Bosch Philippines country sales director, told STMs in a separate interview that he is “proud to be a Filipino” after the Filipino student delegates in China had received their awards in front of other countries.

“I was inspired, really. I’m already 36-year-old and I just now experienced this kind of moment,” said Go, who helped Bosch Philippines to organize the race here in the country last May. “This is the first time we support these students and the result is very unforgettable.”

Promoting the Bosch products is their main job as far as Go’s job is concerned, but he doesn’t expect to keep promoting the Mapua and the UP students and as well as the country after accomplishing something great in Beijing. 

He also says that Bosch provides students the opportunity to learn and have the courage to excel in their professions. “How many kids in the country can build a car? Bosch is always here to support different advocacies just like that.”

“Innovation and skills transfer is an important part of the Bosch philosophy. The [cordless race] championship provides engineering students a challenge in creating race karts powered by Bosch tools and the Filipinos proved they can compete there,” said Go.

“I’m thankful to all the students who participated in the cordless race and we’ll guarantee everybody that we’ll sustain this program for the benefit of the students.”

 http://bit.ly/riGvZo

Solar-powered PHL car racing against world's best

10/16/2011 | 01:41 AM

A Philippine-made car is competing in one of the most revolutionary racing events in the world... and also among the quietest. The Sikat II solar car developed by De La Salle University engineering students and faculty will be racing in the 3,000-kilometer 11th World Solar Challenge (WSC) in Australia starting Sunday.

The biannual race draws innovators from all over the globe to show what long-distance transport can be in an oil-depleted future. It also promises to be an adventure for the racing teams, with camping in the desert and the occasional kangaroo darting onto the race route, which stretches from Darwin in Australia's northern tip to Adelaide on the country's southern coast.

Unlike the roar of conventional internal combustion engines that run on fossil fuels, electric cars powered by solar energy like the Sikat II simply hum even at its top speed of 110 kilometers per hour. [See related story, PHL solar car evolution: From 'Sinag' to 'Sikat II']

The Sikat II is also a statement of solar energy's state of the art in the Philippines, where university researchers are harnessing the cutting-edge advantages of solar cells made locally. The country is a growing exporter of solar panels and other technologies.

The Philippines’ solar car and the team running it, Team Solar Philippines, are competing against vehicles backed by some of the world’s leading universities.

Tokai University, Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, Cambridge University, University of Toronto are among the top-notch institutions registered in the race.

When the country joined the race for the first time in 2007, it placed 12th in a field of 40. Tokai University's "Tokai Challenger" won the race in 2009.

DLSU professor and Sikat II team leader Jose Antonio “Jack" Catalan told GMA News Online via phone interview that their solar car passed the pre-race “dynamic tests" to determine vehicle stability and road-worthiness.

Those tests covered steering, braking and performance. A “hot lap" on the track of the Hidden Valley Motorsport Complex near Darwin in northern Australia followed the dynamic scrutiny to determine the starting position on Sunday.

Catalan said the team will strive to achieve optimum energy efficiency so that Sikat II's solar cells will have enough power to last until the end of the race.

Looking like a plane, Sikat II is a PHL-made solar car competing in a cross-country race in Australia. Using no fossil fuels, it has a top speed of 110 kmh. Team Solar Philippines

Energy challenge

The race has another wrinkle. The solar cars are only allowed five kilowatt-hours maximum of stored energy in their batteries.

“Having demanded the world’s most efficient electric vehicles to travel the route we make things more difficult by adding the concept of ‘man vs. the elements’ by regulating the stored energy component to a nominal 10% of that required to complete the journey," WSC event director Chris Selwood said.

"Each team will travel as far as it can each day and camp in the desert each night. The exact progress is of course subject to the intensity of the sun, the condition of the road and whether there is any prospect of cloud," Selwood added.

Race timetable

Sikat II will be the 32nd solar car to leave the Darwin state square, where the competing vehicles will be flagged off at 8:30 a.m. local time (7 a.m. Manila time).

From Darwin in the north, the solar cars will travel south and are expected to reach the finish line in Adelaide by late Wednesday afternoon.

Organizers said the competing teams must observe local traffic rules, including the speed limits, and non-Australians must have their international drivers' licenses with them.

“Finish of Timing is a point established outside of the Adelaide urban area. Effectively this will determine the winner, however the solar car must still proceed under its own power to the ceremonial finish line in Victoria Square, the centre of Adelaide," organizers of the World Solar Challenge also said.


Solar power plus Lasallian spirit

Team Solar Philippines is made up of about a dozen faculty and students of DLSU. They operate Sikat II, the third generation of Philippine solar cars to compete in the WSC.

The team and their colleagues in the DLSU College of Engineering, with the support of collaborators in the Philippine Solar Car Challenge Society (PSCCS), spent at least seven months to prepare for the race from Darwin to Adelaide through the Australian Outback.

Sikat II, which cost about P6 million to build, sports a more aerodynamic design, weighs 180 kilograms, and has more efficient solar power mechanisms, according to the DLSU team.

Sikat II runs on a 1.8-kilowatt motor and has top speed of 110 kilometers per hour (kph). The maximum speed limit at some sections of the Stuart highway, through which the race will run, is 130 kph.

Sinag, the vehicle that ran the race in 2007, was heavier at 290 kilograms and had a solar array that was two percentage points less efficient than Sikat II's.

The president and CEO of De La Salle Philippines, Bro. Ricardo Laguda, FSC is in Australia to support the team on behalf of the Filipino Lasallian community.

Also in Australia to support the team is PSCCS president Ramon Agustines, team manager of the Philippine contingent, and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) – Philippines, which sent Nini Conwi, the winner of an essay writing contest about Sikat II, to write about the team’s experience in the 11th WSC.

Weather in the Land Down Under

Strong thunderstorms and mostly cloudy skies are forecast over Darwin on Sunday. More clouds are also expected over Katherine, the first checkpoint along the race course.

However, sunny skies are expected up ahead over Tennant Creek and Alice Springs as the course goes through the desert sections of the Australian Outback.

Safety always

Organizers advised the registered teams and media covering the WSC to practice road safety while on the course.

"In stage one of the race, the road from Darwin to Katherine is windy and undulating for the first 200 kms with minimal overtaking lanes," event director Chris Selwood said.

"The drive is long and monotonous. Speed, fatigue and wildlife on the roads are factors that can lead to dangerous situations," Selwood cautioned. "Do not underestimate the danger of driving during hours of darkness as cattle and kangaroos are just two of the obstacles that you may experience sharing the road with you."

He further warned that "(w)hen a road train hits a kangaroo it makes a mess. When your car hits a kangaroo you could be dead too!" — ELR/HS, GMA News

http://bit.ly/pq3EBW 

Solar power seen as option to address Mindanao shortage

Posted on September 26, 2011 09:52:22 PM

 

CAGAYAN DE ORO -- Solar power plants can provide the fastest source of power in Mindanao. That is, if plans push through for its generation among the island’s larger distribution utilities.

 

In a media presentation on Sept. 14, Cecilio U. Sumaoy, senior manager of the Cagayan Electric Power & Light Co. (Cepalco) system operations department, cited the inherent advantages of solar photovoltaic (PV) plants over thermal and other plants of the same capacity.

“The demand for power in Mindanao is constantly increasing, however, no significant additional power-generating capacities are expected within the next two to three years to address this problem,” Mr. Sumaoy said in a position paper.

Considering that 50% of Mindanao’s present power needs are filled by hydropower plants, solar power can immediately address the current capacity shortage and ideally complement the hydropower plants, especially during El Niño episodes, or the dry season.

Despite having an availability factor of only 30%, Mr. Sumaoy said solar power plants are best in addressing daytime peak loads. This would enable hydro plants to store water for release during the nighttime peak hours with oil-fired thermal plants as the last to be dispatched, resulting in much lower power costs to the consumer and other end-users.

Two of the island’s private power utilities are now looking to join forces with the larger rural electric cooperatives to embed solar power plants within their franchise areas and leapfrog the national transmission system.

“Instead of Cepalco doing the bulk of the planned solar PV generation projects, we will bring together around 20 distribution utility companies (the larger electric coops, with Cepalco and Iligan Light) to embed 100 five-megawatt (MW) PV plants in their respective distribution systems,” said David A. Tauli, Cepalco senior vice-president for engineering and spokesperson of the Mindanao Coalition of Power Consumers, in an interview.

“Solar PV plants are the only type of plants that can be brought into operation in less than a year after a decision to go ahead with construction has been made,” he said. Such plants can be constructed within a year from approval by the ERC (Energy Regulatory Commission), he added.

“We are not saying that solar PV alone will solve the problem of power capacity shortage in Mindanao,” Mr. Tauli said. “We are saying that solar PV is the fastest way for bringing in substantial capacity (100 MW or more) to Mindanao, and it will do so with minimal impact on the rates paid by Mindanao power customers compared with diesel power plants.”

Besides the inherently more expensive fuel, diesel or bunker fuel prices also have the additional risk of energy security with prices and availability fluctuating as a result of continued unrest in the Middle East.

Coupled with the hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide emissions inherent in diesel and bunker fuel, the comparative advantage clearly lies in the side of solar energy for Mindanao, Mr. Tauli said.

However, since the present grid code mandates PV power plants of 20 MW or larger be connected to the transmission system, the five MW of smaller size of “embedded” solar plants under the “distributed generation” scheme are not.

Instead of big, base load power plants with inherent financial, social, environmental and other problems, ‘distributed generation’ envisions many small, independent power plants serving the immediate community, which could be a barangay, municipality or a province.

This way, total cost is reduced, social and environmental impact is mitigated mostly due to its smaller scale and the fact that the persons who operate it and benefit from it are both within sight of each other promotes environmental stewardship among residents.

At present, there are 13 large-scale solar projects planned for Mindanao with a total capacity of 260 MW.

These projects are to be located in Cagayan de Oro City, Davao City, Zamboanga City, Laguindingan and Villanueva in Misamis Oriental, San Jose on Dinagat Island, Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Siakol in Zamboanga del Sur, Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat, and Darong, Hagonoy, and Digos City in Davao del Sur. -- Michael D. Baños

 

http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Technology&title=Solar-power-seen-as-option-to-address-Mindanao-shortage-&id=38929