In 2013,

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

provided 26.44% of the total electricity in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and 19,903 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electrical energy out of a total demand of 75,266 gigawatt-hours.Membrere L
"2013 Philippine power statistics"
Accessed 8 April 2016. The Philippines is a net importer of fossil fuels. For the sake of energy security, there is momentum to develop renewable energy sources. The types available include

hydropower Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, converting the Pot ...

geothermal power Geothermal power is electrical power generated from geothermal energy. Technologies in use include dry steam power stations, flash steam power stations and binary cycle power stations. Geothermal electricity generation is currently used in 2 ...

wind power Wind power or wind energy is mostly the use of wind turbines to electricity generation, generate electricity. Wind power is a popular, sustainable energy, sustainable, renewable energy source that has a much smaller Environmental impact of wi ...

solar power Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic e ...

and

biomass power Biomass is plant-based material used as a fuel for heat or electricity production. It can be in the form of wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues, and waste from industry, farms, and households. Some people use the terms biom ...

. The government of the Philippines has legislated a number of policies in order to increase the use of renewable energy by the country. The government has committed to raising to 50% the contribution of renewables of its total electricity generating capacity, with 15.3 gigawatts (GW) by 2030. The move would help the country in its commitment to reduce its carbon emissions by 70% by 2030.

Background

There is momentum to decrease reliance on

fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels m ...

s due to the negative effects such as

pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

and financial uncertainty because of fluctuating fuel prices.World Journa
"See how climate change affects the Philippines"
''TIME'' Accessed 8 April 2016. Legislation passed by the

Congress of the Philippines The Congress of the Philippines ( fil, Kongreso ng Pilipinas, italic=unset) is the legislature of the national government of the Philippines. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House of R ...

to support the use of renewable energy include the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (2001); the Biofuels Act (2006), which encourages the use of biomass fuels; the Renewable Energy Act (2008); and the Climate Change Act (2009), which provides a legal basis for addressing climate change through

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

. Renewable energy implementation is important to the Philippines for several reasons. The geographic characteristics of the country make it vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.

Rising sea levels Rising may refer to: * Rising, a stage in baking - see Proofing (baking technique) *Elevation * Short for Uprising, a rebellion Film and TV * "Rising" (''Stargate Atlantis''), the series premiere of the science fiction television program ''Starga ...

are a threat because the Philippines is an

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...

with many cities located in coastal areas. As the coastline recedes due to rising seas, coastal cities become vulnerable to flooding. Climate change has also been linked to changing weather patterns and

extreme weather Extreme weather or extreme climate events includes unexpected, unusual, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Often, extreme events are based on a locat ...

events.''Verifying greenhouse gas emissions'' National Research Council

Washington DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

2010 p vii – 36. . Reliance on fossil fuels is detrimental to the

energy security Energy security is the association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to (relatively) cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven ...

of the Philippines. The Philippines is a net importer of fossil fuels. In 2012, the Philippines imported 20 million tons of coal. Eight million tons were produced domestically. In 2010, the Philippines imported 54 million barrels of oil and produced 33,000 barrels. Given this dependence on imported coal and oil, the Philippines is vulnerable to price fluctuations and supply constraints.Brahim S. "Renewable energy and energy security in the Philippines" in ''Energy Procedia''. The Philippine Department of Energy wrote:

“The harnessing and utilization of renewable energy comprises a critical component of the government's strategy to provide energy supply for the country. This is evident in the power sector where increased generation from geothermal and hydro resources has lessened the country's dependency on imported and polluting fuels. In the government's rural electrification efforts, on the other hand, renewable energy sources such as solar, micro-hydro, wind and biomass resources are seeing wide-scale use.”

Sources

The Philippines utilizes renewable energy sources including hydropower, geothermal and solar energy, wind power and biomass resources. In 2013, these sources contributed 19,903 GWh of electrical energy, representing 26.44 percent of the country's electricity needs. Among the renewable energy sources available in the country, geothermal shows to be the cheapest and most (economically) attractive energy source followed by wind, hydropower, and lastly, solar PV.

Hydroelectric plants

Hydropower is one of the main sources of renewable energy in the Philippines. There are

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

plants of both the conventional dam and

run-of-the-river Run-of-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amou ...

types in the country. Of twenty-nine hydroelectric plants, fourteen are conventional dam and fifteen are run-of-the-river systems."List of existing plants (Luzon)"
Department of Energy"List of existing plants (Visayas)"
Department of Energy"List of existing plants (Mindanao)
Department of Energy Hydropower accounts for 11.8% of the energy generation and 17-18% of installed capacity in the Philippines. Many areas of the Philippines are suitable for hydroelectricity production."Hydropower"
Department of Energy Accessed 8 April 2016 However, hydroelectricity production in the Philippines can cause upstream and downstream flooding during

monsoonal A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...

weather and when excess water is released from dams."Release of Angat, Ipo dam water aggravates Bulacan floods"
InterAksyon.com Accessed 8 April 2016. Hydropower integration also has the potential to disturb pre-existing natural ecosystems and cultures as well as cause land dispossession and community resettlement. The methods of using

geographic information system A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...

(GIS) and

remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Earth ...

(RS) to determine suitable sites for constructing hydroelectric plants do not tend to incorporate social or environmental considerations. In response to the construction of large scale hydroelectric infrastructure, opposition movements have arisen. Anti-dam organizations and protests may advocate for indigenous peoples, environmental conservation,

anti-capitalism Anti-capitalism is a political ideology and movement encompassing a variety of attitudes and ideas that oppose capitalism. In this sense, anti-capitalists are those who wish to replace capitalism with another type of economic system, such as s ...

, or

anti-imperialism Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is a term used in a variety of contexts, usually by nationalist movements who want to secede from a larger polity (usually in the form of an empire, but also in a multi-ethnic so ...

. Vocal environmental human rights defenders have been red-tagged by the government or extra-judicially killed by the military or police. The rights, concerns, and political agency of indigenous peoples trying to protect their villages and sacred sites from being submerged have often been disregarded due to urban-centric economic development. Incorporating small scale plants, especially micro-hydroelectric plants that have a capacity of less than 0.1 MW (100 kW), may mitigate adverse side effects and be a cost-effective way to bring electricity to rural and off-the-grid communities.Isolated mountain communities have seen improvements in education, community engagement, and economy due to improved lighting provided by micro-hydropower.

Geothermal power

In the Philippines, geothermal energy is used to generate electricity. Two types of technologies are used in the Philippines. These are firstly, the higher temperature flash steam method and secondly, the lower temperature

binary cycle A binary cycle is a method for generating electrical power from geothermal resources and employs two separate fluid cycles, hence binary cycle. The primary cycle extracts the geothermal energy from the reservoir, and secondary cycle converts the ...

method."Geothermal power and electricity production"
Renewable energy world website. Accessed 8 April 2016. In the Philippines, the first is the more common. The second is used only at the MAKBAN plant. Geothermal plants are suitable for areas with low winds, such as

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

, and areas that have rainy weather, such as

Batanes Batanes, officially the Province of Batanes ( ivv, Provinsiya nu Batanes; Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Batanes''; fil, Lalawigan ng Batanes, ), is an archipelagic province in the Philippines, administratively part of the Cagayan Valley region. It i ...

. Geothermal energy production can result in the release of toxic substances such as

mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The unde ...

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...

and

selenium Selenium is a chemical element with the symbol Se and atomic number 34. It is a nonmetal (more rarely considered a metalloid) with properties that are intermediate between the elements above and below in the periodic table, sulfur and tellurium, ...

."Geothermal energy"
National Geographic Society 20 November 2012. Accessed 8 April 2016. In 2014, at a geothermal plant in

Biliran Biliran, officially the Province of Biliran ( Waray-Waray: ''Probinsya han Biliran''; ceb, Lalawigan sa Biliran; tl, Lalawigan ng Biliran), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region (Region VIII). Biliran is ...

, eight plant workers were hospitalized with

hydrogen sulphide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The unde ...

poisoning.

Solar power

In 2015, three solar farms were constructed in the Philippines. The Philippines receives over 7kWh per square meter per day during its peak month of April and lowest at 3kWH per square meter per day during its off-peak month of December as observed by ''Schadow1 Expeditions'' in 33 cities of the country. Given the country's high solar potential, the solar energy's contribution to the energy mix is expected to increase from the current (2019) 1.2% of 23GW to at least 3.5% of the 43GW total capacity by 2040.

Wind power

All wind power sites in the Philippines are on-shore facilities. Some, such as

Ilocos Norte Ilocos Norte, officially the Province of Ilocos Norte ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ilocos Norte; tl, Lalawigan ng Ilocos Norte), is a province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region. Its capital is Laoag City, located in the northwest corner of ...

Pililla Wind Farm The "Pililla, Rizal" Wind Energy Service Contract granted to Alternergy Philippine Holdings Corporation (APHC) covers an area of 4,515 hectares under Department of Energy WESC NO. 2009-09-018. This Wind Energy Service Contract (WESC) has two ph ...

Rizal Rizal, officially the Province of Rizal ( fil, Lalawigan ng Rizal), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Its capital is the city of Antipolo. It is about east of Manila. The p ...

and

Bangui Wind Farm Bangui Wind Farm is a wind farm in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. The wind farm uses 20 units of high Vestas V82 1.65 MW wind turbines, arranged in a single row stretching along a shoreline off Bangui Bay, facing the South China Sea ...

are tourist destinations."Ilocos N. breaks tourists record"
''The Manila Bulletin'' Accessed 8 April 2016."Wind farm drawing tourists to Rizal"
''The Philippine Star'' Accessed 8 April 2016.

Biomass power

Biomass energy Biomass is plant-based material used as a fuel for heat or electricity production. It can be in the form of wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues, and waste from industry, farms, and households. Some people use the terms bio ...

refers to energy derived from plant and animal sources. Biomass resources are abundant in the Philippines due to its large agricultural industry.

Bagasse Bagasse ( ) is the dry pulpy fibrous material that remains after crushing sugarcane or sorghum stalks to extract their juice. It is used as a biofuel for the production of heat, energy, and electricity, and in the manufacture of pulp and building ...

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

husks, and

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

husks are used to generate power."Biomass, solar, wind and ocean"
Department of Energy. Accessed 8 April 2016. The Philippines also uses

Biogas Biogas is a mixture of gases, primarily consisting of methane, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide, produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste and food waste. It is a ...

from

landfill A landfill site, also known as a tip, dump, rubbish dump, garbage dump, or dumping ground, is a site for the disposal of waste materials. Landfill is the oldest and most common form of waste disposal, although the systematic burial of the waste ...

as a biomass energy source. The availability of biomass can be affected by events such as

drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...

."Advantages and Disadvantages"
Science 134 website. Accessed 8 April 2016.,

Legislation

The Philippine government has passed four laws that seek to improve the state of renewable energy. These are the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (RA 9136); the Biofuel Act of 2006 (RA 9367); the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 (RA 9513); and the Climate Change Act of 2009 (RA 9729). The Electric Power Industry Reform Act (2001) (EPIRA) promotes the use of renewable energy particularly through private sector investment.

_However,_after_a_decade_of_EPIRA's_enactment,_advocacy_groups_and_lawmakers_said_the_law_only_strengthened_monopolies_and_caused_electricity_rates_to_double. The_Biofuels_Act_(2006)_documents_state_policy_to_reduce_the_Philippines'_dependence_on_imported_fossil_fuels._It_encourages_investment_in_biofuels_through_incentives_including_reduced_tax_on_local_or_imported_biofuels;_and_bank_loans_for_Filipino_citizens_engaged_in_biofuel_production._The_law_resulted_in_the_formation_of_the_National_Biofuel_Board_(NBB)."Republic_Act_No._9367"
Department_of_Energy_Accessed_13_April_2016. The_Renewable_Energy_Act_(2008)_legislates_state_policy_to_accelerate_the_development_and_use_of_renewable_energy_resources."Republic_Act_No._9513"
_Department_of_Energy._Under_this_act_(section_6),_mandated_a_minimum_percentage_of_generation_of_electricity_from_renewable_sources_(a_renewable_portfolio_standard_(RPS))._Also_under_this_act_(section_7),_a_Feed-in_tariff.html" "title=""Republic Act No. 9136" department of Energy. Accessed 12 April 2016. However, after a decade of EPIRA's enactment, advocacy groups and lawmakers said the law only strengthened monopolies and caused electricity rates to double. The Biofuels Act (2006) documents state policy to reduce the Philippines' dependence on imported fossil fuels. It encourages investment in biofuels through incentives including reduced tax on local or imported biofuels; and bank loans for Filipino citizens engaged in biofuel production. The law resulted in the formation of the National Biofuel Board (NBB)."Republic Act No. 9367"
Department of Energy Accessed 13 April 2016. The Renewable Energy Act (2008) legislates state policy to accelerate the development and use of renewable energy resources."Republic Act No. 9513"
Department of Energy. Under this act (section 6), mandated a minimum percentage of generation of electricity from renewable sources (a renewable portfolio standard (RPS)). Also under this act (section 7), a Feed-in tariff">feed-In tariff A feed-in tariff (FIT, FiT, standard offer contract,Couture, T., Cory, K., Kreycik, C., Williams, E., (2010)Policymaker's Guide to Feed-in Tariff Policy Design National Renewable Energy Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy advanced renewable tariff, ...

system was implemented for electricity produced from renewable sources, giving producers the security of long term fixed prices. Electricity utilities make net metering agreements with qualified end-users of renewable energy systems. A minimum percentage of electricity from renewable sources for the off-grid missionary electrification system was also mandated. Under the Renewable Energy Act (2008) incentives are available to developers of renewable energy. These incentives include an income tax holiday for the first seven years of the entity's commercial operations; duty-free importation and special realty tax rates on renewable energy machinery, equipment and materials within the first ten years; net operating loss carry-over; zero percent

Value-Added Tax A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the end ...

(VAT) rate for the sale of fuel or power generated from renewable sources of energy; and

Tax Credit A tax credit is a tax incentive which allows certain taxpayers to subtract the amount of the credit they have accrued from the total they owe the state. It may also be a credit granted in recognition of taxes already paid or a form of state "disc ...

on domestic capital equipment and services. The Climate Change Act (2009) legislated state policy to incorporate a gender-sensitive, pro-children and pro-poor perspective in all climate change and renewable energy efforts."Republic Act No. 9729"
Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines 23 October 2009. Accessed 13 April 2016

Feed-in tariff program statistics

Private sector involvement

The Renewable Energy Act (2008) encourages the involvement of the private sector in renewable energy production through fiscal and non-fiscal incentives. Fiscal incentives include tax reductions, as well as funding assistance from both government and third parties. A number of international organizations have expressed willingness to aid Philippine businesses in developing local renewable energy infrastructure including German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Asian Development Bank (ADB), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Impediments to private sector investment include high transaction costs; social engineering costs; lack of suitable local technology; and caps on electricity prices made by the Energy Regulatory Commission.

Public-private partnership

Up until June 2015, the Department of Energy (DOE) had awarded 646 service contracts as Public-private partnerships to private sector entities under the Renewable Energy Law with installed capacity of 2,760.52 MW."Renewable energy on the rise"
''Philippine analyst'' July 2015 Instances of private sector projects include: ''*—off grid project''

References

{{Renewable energy by country