Wind Energy Training

SIBAT organised for me to attend a 2 week conference with the grand title...

'Capacity Building for Wind Power Project Developers, Providers of Engineering consulting Servies and Government Planners on the Conduct of Preparatory Activities for the Development of Wind Power Projects in the Philippines and Vietnam and Adopting European and International Standards'.

25MW wind farm in Bangui Bay, Ilocos Norte

The Phillipines has the best wind resource in South East Asia, with 7,404MW total potential capacity (according to the WWF), but currently only has one 25MW wind farm. A number of large Independent Power Providers (IPPs) have been investigating sites connecting to the main grid for the last 6 years however there are not suitable economic incentives or financial support available, as in Europe or North America, for the project to be profitable. The 25MW site is operated by a Philippine company but the investment and some technical support has come from the Danish International Development Agency. The wind farm passes the additionality test for money from the clean development mechanism (CDM).

The Department of Energy hopes to pass a Renewable Energy Bill in the coming year that would include economic incentives to make wind energy more viable and less of a financial risk. Currently the most suitable application for wind on a large scale in the Philippines is as part of a diesel hybrid system on the many off-grid islands. With the latest technology wind energy can reach up to 65% of installed capacity and can viably displace much of the diesel generated electricity without subsidies.

The training was useful, however I fear not enough influential and powerful people from the necessary government agencies or large banks were present to implement the lessons and recommendations given by the expert training providers to develop the wind sector here in the Philippines. The significant proportion of interest was from commercial IPPs.

View from the narcelle of a 1.65MW wind turbine

The training was intended for the development of large commercial wind farms but a lot of lessons can be learnt for small wind projects. It has given me the opportunity to study the energy sector, hear the experiences of big wind project developers in the Philippines and discuss the project with international wind energy consultants. It included a trip to the wind farm in Ilocos Norte but unfortunately I was unable to attend.