By Bianca Angelica D. Añago
A PROJECT supported by the German government proposes to install solar panels in at least 50 public schools and three public hospitals in Quezon City, with a target of generating 3 megawatts (MW) from the panels to be installed.
The German government will support the project via its C40 Cities Finance Facility (CFF) and will also provide training.
At the 3 MW target and assuming prevailing power rates charged by the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), annual savings are estimated at P38.77 million, CFF Senior Project Advisor Ferdinand P. Larona said in an e-mail Monday.
He added that the project is also expected to eliminate the equivalent of 2,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year.
After the initial installations, Mr. Larona said the city government intends to put up solar panels in over 100 other public schools and in other city-owned facilities.
The German government is supporting the city government in the technical design and financial analysis aspects of the project, and provided training and tools to help the city’s solar technical working group prepare to implement the project.
The CFF project provides cities with advisory and capacity development services. It is implemented by the German development organization known as GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) in partnership with and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40).
According to Mr. Larona, C40 is a network of 94 megacities committed to addressing climate change. The 94 cities account for about 15% of the global population and about 20% of global GDP.
Quezon City was selected for its population of 3 million and annual budget of about P100.9 billion.
Mr. Larona said, however, that secondary cities are also being tapped for the project, with mentorship programs on solar panel project preparation under way in Batangas City, Butuan, and Pasig.
“They can use the knowledge they gain when they replicate or scale-up the project in other city owned buildings,” Mr. Larona said.
Solar panels for the Quezon City General Hospital, Rosario Maclang Bautista General Hospital, and Novaliches District Hospital will be procured this year or early next year, while the solar panels for 50 public schools will be procured once classes are allowed to resume under the pandemic.
“(Quezon City) supports progressive climate action and it is working on ambitious goals for environmental sustainability,” Mr. Larona said.
