By Angelica Y. Yang, Reporter
LOCAL renewable energy (RE) firm Citicore Power, Inc. hopes to develop up to three new solar farms with a total capacity of 200 megawatts (MW) next year in Luzon.
“We’re looking at least two to three new solar farms that we will be constructing for the full-year 2022. We’re looking at a total of around 200 megawatts for these… projects and these are all in Luzon,” Citicore Power President Oliver Y. Tan told BusinessWorld in an online interview last week.
He added that the firm will be “very busy” next year as it develops these new projects.
Mr. Tan provided no further details on the specific locations of the solar farms, adding that the firm still needed to speak with local municipalities regarding the planned projects.
When asked about the projected investment for the new facilities, he said that it will form part of the power company’s capital expenditures (capex) for 2022, which the firm will finalize soon.
Citicore Power has earlier expressed its intent to launch an energy-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) offering by the end of this year. It hopes to raise up to P10 billion from the offer, with the proceeds going to 1,500 MW of pipeline solar projects in Luzon.
In the past two weeks, Citicore Power has filed the energy-focused REIT’s registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission and listing application with the local bourse.
“The company is looking at potential offer period sometime in November,” Mr. Tan said.
Asked for updates on the firm’s 72-MW solar farm in Arayat-Mexico, Pampanga he said that the project’s phase one is “progressing very well” as it is on track to meet its target to go online by early next year.
“In fact, we’re looking at energization by Q1 (the first quarter of) next year,” he added, referring to its joint venture with the Ayala-led AC Energy Corp. The 72-MW facility broke ground in June.
Citicore Power previously said it had allotted P4 billion in capital expenditures for solar and hydro projects this year. Of the amount, some P2.5 billion will go to solar facilities, while P1.5 billion is allocated for hydro projects.