Philippines Renewable Energy Market Insight

Renewable energy market is developing rapidly in the Philippines as renewable energy represents an esstential part of the country's low emissions development strategy. The Renewable Energy Act of 2008 was passed and this new law aims to accelerate the development of renewable energy sources through the provision of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives to private investors and equipment manufacturers and suppliers.

The Philippine Department of Energy (DOE) established the National Renewable Energy Programme (NREP) to ensure that the goals set out in the Renewable Energy Act were achieved. International funding agencies are starting to invest in the Philippines renewable energy projects and the rising cost of fossil fuels has accelerated the investment in these projects. Multilaterial agencies such as the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, the Asian Development Bank and the United Nations Development Programme have all been promoting renewable resources in the Philippines.

Since signing the Renewable Energy Act of 2008, a total of 221 contracts have been signed and the target is to double the renewable energy resource capacity for power generation at the end of the planning cycle.

In 2008, 5,300 MW of renewable energy source was available. In the Philippines, the UNDP sponsored programme called the Capacity Building to Remove Barriers to Renewable Energy Development stated that there was difficulty in accessing financing mechanisms for the renewable energy projects and the lack of a comprehensive development plan or clear policy environment, resulted in a slower implementation of these projects.