Filinvest-ENGIE to energize solar projects in Dec.

By Sheldeen Joy Talavera, Reporter

LOW-CARBON energy services provider ENGIE Services Philippines and its partner are set to energize two rooftop solar systems by December, with a total capacity of around four megawatts (MW) in Luzon and the Visayas.

“We are energizing two new projects in December,” ENGIE Services Philippines Deputy General Manager Jean-Baptiste Dreanic said on the sidelines of the BusinessWorld Forecast 2025 forum last week.

The projects are in partnership with Filinvest Development Corp., he said.

“As a foreign company, we are very happy to partner with one of the largest conglomerates in the Philippines, which is Filinvest,” Mr. Dreanic said.

For 2025, he said ENGIE Services Philippines is targeting to energize up to 10 solar power projects with a total capacity of up to 10 MW.

“Next year, realistically, we could expect between five and 10 projects to be energized,” Mr. Dreanic said.

ENGIE Services Philippines is a unit of the French utility company ENGIE, which operates in 31 countries. The company provides sustainable energy solutions, including district cooling systems and integrated facility management services to commercial and industrial clients.

The Philippine unit has 19 megawatts-peak (MWp) of renewable energy projects via business-to-business transactions in operation or under construction. It also has large-scale renewable energy projects with a capacity of 300 MWp.

“When we develop, especially the large-scale projects, very often we are partnering with local companies or international companies,” Mr. Dreanic said.

Meanwhile, he said that ENGIE is exploring other renewable energy technologies aside from solar power.

“We are exploring offshore wind in the Philippines. [On] hydro, we would love to explore, but [there is] a market already with very good local experts that are willing to invest, so it’s not that straightforward to invest for us and develop hydro, but it’s really something we like to invest in,” he said.

The Philippines’ offshore wind resources boast an estimated potential of 178 gigawatts, according to the World Bank’s 2022 Offshore Wind Roadmap for the Philippines.

The Energy department is planning to hold a green energy auction specific to offshore wind in 2025.