State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) ramped up support to the National Government’s energy programs, focusing on projects that promote affordable, reliable and sustainable solutions to address the country’s energy requirements, a top official said.
DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Michael O. de Jesus said the Bank has approved nearly P77-billion in loans under its Financing Utilities for Sustainable Energy Development (FUSED) Program, the flagship credit program that seeks to increase access to electricity services in the countryside.
“As of December 2022, DBP has approved 92 accounts under the FUSED Program, 27 of which are renewable energy projects,” de Jesus said. “We also expect that by 2030, we have funded P58-billion of the estimated investment requirements for power generation and distribution indicated in the Philippine Energy Plan 2012-2030.”
DBP is the eighth largest bank in the country in terms of assets and provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy – infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; environment; social services and community development.
De Jesus said that under the facility, DBP granted a P1.8-billion funding support for the development of a 13.2 MegaWatt (MW) wind farm project of PetroWind Energy, Inc. (PWEI) which will be constructed south of the operating 36 MW Nabas-1 Wind Power Project, located on the island of Panay in Aklan Province.
He said the wind farm project recently won the Visayas wind allocation in the first-ever Green Energy Auction Program (GEAP) conducted by the Department of Energy (DOE).
“The project is a testament to DBP’s commitment towards environmental protection and sustainable development and is aligned with the National Government’s thrust of promoting energy independence through the development, utilization and commercialization of renewable energy resources,” he said.
DBP Senior Vice President and Officer-in-Charge of the Development and Resiliency Sector Carolyn I. Olfindo said the project is expected to augment the existing power supply in the Visayas Grid by contributing 13.2 MW of plant capacity.
She said the project is expected to boost local employment and generate additional jobs for at least 400 people during the project’s construction period.
“Our long-standing partnership with PWEI reaffirms our intense drive in promoting the nation’s agenda of inclusive growth and economic development, as well as to bolster investments in the renewable energy sector,” Olfindo said.