PHL to receive $1.25B in renewable energy loans

The Philippine government is expected to finalize a $1 billion renewable energy and energy efficiency loan program with multilateral lender Asian Development Bank (ADB) by mid-2011. “We’re in the design and negotiation [phase] with the government now. The loan will be approved in the middle of next year, the implementation should be four years," said ADB principal planning and coordination specialist Samuel Tumiwa at the sidelines of the Clean Energy Expo 2010 in Singapore. Most of the $1 billion will be focused on supporting solar, wind, and biomass power projects. The Philippines will also receive an additional $250 million from the Clean Trust Fund (CTF), half of which will go to solar projects at 0.25 percent interest for 40 years. “For the CTF money in the Philippines, we are really focusing on scaling up the use of solar energy," said Tumiwa. The Manila-based ADB has also announced a range of initiatives to bring down barriers, such as price and policy issues, which prevent the wide-scale adoption of low-carbon and clean-energy technologies in the Asia and Pacific region. The ADB cited its Asia Solar Energy Initiative, which aims to identify and develop large-capacity solar projects that will generate up to 3,000 megawatts of solar power by 2012. “I think the Philippines has done a good job in terms of getting ready to really mobilize the financing that’s needed [for] clean energy," said Woo Chong Um, ADB deputy director general for the Regional and Sustainable Development Department. Um expressed confidence that the present administration, especially Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, would be able ensure a secure and sustainable energy supply for the country. The ADB is also open to the Philippine government’s plan to extend the tenure of its loans, said Um, noting that existing- seven to eight-year loans could be extended up to 20 years or longer. Longer-term financing would give the government more leeway in managing its financing requirements, Um said. The Clean Energy Expo 2010, scheduled from November 2 to 4, has drawn around 5,000 participants from over 40 countries. “With the clean energy sector still in its infancy, and governments and private organizations urgently looking for assurance as they recognize the growth and potential of the industry, Clean Energy Expo Asia continues to play an important role in providing an avenue for regional knowledge exchange that will fuel clean energy development in Asia," said Michael Dreyer, managing director of Koelnmesse, among the largest trade fair companies in the world. Dreyer also noted that financial investments in clean energy reached $65 billion for the first half of 2010, a 22 percent increase from the same period last year. Investments in the clean energy sector in Asia are predicted to double this year, reaching $70 billion with China, India, and other southeast Asian nations taking the lead in the sustainable energy market. — LRS/VS, GMANews.TV