Singapore-headquartered renewable energy developer Gurīn Energy has completed a 75MW solar PV power plant situated in the municipality of Palauig in the Philippines.
Named the Palauig Solar Power Plant, the site is the developer’s first operational project in the country. It features 136,363 ground-mounted solar PV modules. Shizen, a fully owned subsidiary of Gurīn Energy, owns the project.
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Gurīn confirmed it had struck a partnership with AboitizPower’s retail electricity units, Adventenergy Inc. and Adventpower Inc., to offtake the solar PV plant’s power, which will supply clean energy to AboitizPower’s commercial and industrial customers.
Bob Driscoll, CEO of Gurīn Energy, believes the project’s success was due to the strong positive reception from the local communities in Palauig.
“The completion of the Palauig Solar Power Plant, our first operational project, is a milestone in Gurīn Energy’s drive to help move Asia to 100% renewable energy. Our achievement is reflective of the ongoing support we have received from the communities in Palauig, to whom we express our thanks,” Driscoll said.
Driscoll also expressed gratitude to its sole bank partner, UnionBank, and the company’s other partners, such as AboitizPower and Radio Veritas, as well as to the national, provincial and municipal authorities.
Gurīn has grown its presence across the Southeast Asian market in recent years. This is exemplified its Vanda solar-plus-storage joint venture, which is owned by Gurīn and Petronas’ clean energy solutions entity Gentari International Renewables. Last year, the companies announced a module supply deal with Chinese solar manufacturer Trina Solar for the project.
A unique aspect of the Palauig solar PV plant is the establishment of a solar education programme, named in honour of the late Cari Leviste Azores of the Leviste family, who Gurīn said had played a pivotal role in the project’s development.
The programme will be free to all primary and secondary schools in the Philippines and will begin welcoming visitors in October 2025. Through the programme, students will be educated on renewable energy.
Commenting on the programme, Joey Leviste Jr, senior advisor to Gurīn Energy and chairman of Shizen, said: “Through the Cari Leviste Azores Visit Solar Education Programme, we hope that the next generation of Filipinos will be inspired to pursue careers in clean energy and sustainability.”
Growing support for Philippines solar
Thanks to supportive regulations, the renewable energy sector in the Philippines is growing rapidly. The government intends for half of its power to come from renewable sources by 2040, which means an additional 74GW of renewable energy capacity will be needed.
An example of this is the Philippines government’s 2024-25 Green Energy Auction Program (GEAP), which is expected to be held in the first quarter of 2025. The GEAP, which held its first auction in 2022, is designed to stimulate growth and investment in the country’s renewable energy sector.
This has resulted in growth of solar PV in the country, with PV Tech having reported in April 2024 that the country will add 2GW of solar PV capacity by the end of the year. One project set to benefit under the GEAP scheme is Taiwan-headquartered developer J&V Energy’s 180MW solar power plant in General Santos.
