Oslob among potential sites for wind farm, DOE reports

LOCAL investors are checking the feasibility of setting up a wind power farm in the southern Cebu town of Oslob, a Department of Energy (DOE) official said.

Engineer Jun Baclay of the DOE said around 80-100 hectares of land are needed for one such farm, but the initial investment is likely to be viable “because wind will always be there all year.”

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In the Visayas, a potential total of 70,000 megawatts can be produced.

The possible sites include San Carlos City in Negros, Aklan in Panay Island and Calbayog in Samar. The government’s energy development plan requires the development of efficient and renewable energy sources like wind.

Wind power investments, however, have to be site-specific, participants of a recent renewable energy tour were informed.

Almost 50 percent of the total production of electricity in Ilocos Norte is provided by 20 wind turbines spread over four kilometers of sand on Bangui Bay near Laoag City.

The Northwind Farm can produce up to 33 mw of energy and is considered the first and the largest wind park in Southeast Asia. It started its commercial operation in 2005, with an initial investment of US$54 million.

It usually takes a year’s worth of wind measurements before an area can be considered viable. But it took Northwind three years to study annual wind patterns in Ilocos Norte to project the monthly probable wind capacity, said operations manager Dino Tiatco.

From August to February, more electrical energy is produced by the farm, mainly because it is cooler during those months.

Also, wind energy can be considered only as a supplement to a main power source.

“It is not feasible if only wind power (is relied on). There should be a regular source and wind energy is only a supplement to the main provider of electricity,” said Tiatco.

Northwind sells its electricity to the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative (INEC), which has energized all 21 municipalities of Ilocos Norte, including Laoag City and the City of Batac.

The province reported 100 percent electrification. INEC had signed a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement with Northwind Power Development Corp. since October 2001. Northwind aims to develop wind power as a renewable, eco-friendly and economical source of energy. RBF

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on April 14, 2010.