San Miguel to use solar farm to power Bulacan airport

San Miguel Corp. (SMC) announced it would build a 200-megawatt solar farm to support the power supply of its P740-billion New Manila International Airport project in Bulacan.

According to SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang, the facility would be built through San Miguel Global Power.

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The business giant did not detail the cost and timeline of solar farm construction. Still, he said it would have a battery energy storage facility that can store power when the generation is high, but power consumption is low.

“The battery storage will be a viable solution to balancing electricity loads and storing unstable energy supply coming from the sun and other renewable sources of energy which we are looking to utilize for the airport,” he said in an emailed statement.

“Our approach has always been to use cutting-edge technology to shift sustainability to better fuels while balancing the needs of our country, economy, and people for affordable, reliable traditional fuel-based power. We continue to invest in technologies so that our power facilities would have as little impact as possible on the environment,” he added.

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SMC also partnered with the Technical Education Skills and Development Authority (Tesda) is offering free skills and livelihood training for Bulacan residents ahead of Bulacan Airport construction.

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San Miguel to use solar farm to power Bulacan airport

San Miguel Corporation would pay for the tuition, assessment, trainer’s honoraria, meals, insurance, and transportation allowance of the trainees, all former residents of Barangay Taliptip.

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Manila International Airport construction is expected to solve the congestion problems at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), aside from providing jobs and revenues.

The proposed airport will be built on a 2,500-hectare coastal property as part of an envisioned 12,000-hectare township that features a residential zone, government center, seaport, and an industrial zone.

The ₱735.634-billion airport development will cover the passenger terminal building with airside and landside facilities and an airport toll road and railway.