Press Release
June 2, 2011

SOLAR SEEN AS VIABLE ENERGY ALTERNATIVE

Senator Edgardo J. Angara said that large scale deployment of solar installations throughout the country is a viable alternative energy option, especially as new technology to make solar panels more affordable are developed.

Angara noted that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is backing the development of solar energy in the Asia-Pacific region, targeting 3,000 megawatts of installations by 2013. The ADB is planning to invest $2.25 billion in financing solar projects, with an additional $6.75 billion to be funded by the private sector.

ADB's commitment shows that solar is a potential game-changer, and will grow much faster now that production of solar panels is dropping due to new, more efficient technology.

The Congressional Commission of Science, Technology and Engineering (COMSTE), which Angara chairs, has long been backing the use of renewable energy sources like solar to help secure the energy supply of the country.

Angara said that COMSTE is participating in the first ever Philippine Solar Photovoltaic Summit in the Philippine Semiconductor and Electronics Convention and Exhibition, which is currently underway at the SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia.

The event is hosted by the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. (SEIPI) and the Philippine Solar Power Alliance (PSPA), with whom COMSTE works closely. The event will also bring together experts keen on developing the country as a possible manufacturing hub for solar.

Angara, author of the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 which encourages local entrepreneurs to go into the development of the country's vast renewable energy resources, added that California has mandated that 33 percent of the state's energy must be sourced from RE by 2020.

He added that this piece of legislation promotes the benefits of using RE and, at the same time, creates new 'green' jobs.

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