The three municipalities in the 20,000-hectare Olutanga Island have agreed to band together and explore the prospect of establishing their own power supply facility, a common Solar Farm.
During the 2-day planning workshop to craft a Master Plan for Olutanga Island development, stakeholders of the island identified sustainable and affordable power supply as one of the major challenges.
On the suggestion of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) which facilitated the planning workshop, the mayors of the three towns, Arthur Ruste of Olutanga, Dr. Lulu Caloñge of Mabuhay and Orlando Ramiso of Talusan, welcomed the idea of a Solar Farm to be owned by the three local government units.
They said a reliable power supply is critical in the establishment of tourism and processing facilities in the island.
MinDA will provide technical assistance in determing the viability of a Solar Farm in the island which is part of Zamboanga Sibugay.
Currently, the island is served by an electric cooperative using a diesel generator.
A 1MW Solar Farm has an estimated cost of $1-M, an amount which the LGUs said they could fund through a loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines, MinDA banking partner.
MinDA has an institutional program on Renewable and Green Energy Generation Program especially for island communities.
MinDA, with the support of the European Union, is implementing a Solar-Diesel Hybrid Program for seaweed farmers of Tawitawi.
Called Renewable Energy for Tawitawi Seaweeds, the program is being undertaken by UNIDO and supported by the National Power Corp. and the Provincial Governmnt of Tawitawi.
#KungGustoMayParaan!
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#FutureBelongsToTheBrave!
(Photos of Solar Farms were downloaded from public websites.)
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