The provincial government of Pangasinan has signed a joint development agreement with CS First Green Agri-Industrial Development Inc., URIT Limited Philippines Corporation, and China Energy International Group for the establishment of solar power projects worth a total of US$503 million.

In a statement issued on Friday, Governor Ramon Guico III said the solar power projects will be established in Dasol and Infanta towns.

“There’s a looming energy crisis. In some [parts] of the province, there have been outages. And again, Pangasinan is going to play a key role in contributing to the power requirements of our country,” he said.

Through the projects, 321 megawatts of renewable energy capacity will be added to the requirements of the province in 2027, according to Guico.

Guico said it is part of their economic agenda under the Provincial Economic Development and Investment Promotion Office (PEDIPO).

“We welcome more investors. The reason that we first set up our PEDIPO Department headed by lawyer Raymundo Bautista is to encourage many more investors to put their money in the province,” he said.

Andy Wu of China Energy International said the project may be operational before 2026 or until 2027.

“Pangasinan is a very suitable place to develop Solar Power Plants because of the sunshine. We hope this project can go into operation before the year 2026 and 2027,” he said.

Cezar Quiambao, Special Consultant to the Office of the Governor, said electricity prices will decrease as a result of the solar power projects — a huge help to the overall progress of the economy of the province. (PNA)