Two Chinese companies are investing $4 billion in the Philippines to set up manufacturing facilities that will produce wind power plant equipment including towers and blades.
The Board of Investments (BOI) said one project involves the manufacture of monopile towers and the second project will produce turbines and blades, with each project costing $2 billion in investments.
“Hopefully we can close the project this yearend,” BOI managing director Ceferino Rodolfo Tuesday said at the sidelines of the Philippine Economic Mission organized by the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) for Japanese companies visiting the Philippines.
Rodolfo said the two Chinese firms already scouted prospective sites for the projects near ports and with a workforce that have the skill set important to support the projects.
“When you talk about offshore wind, the component of wind projects are really big parts. A blade can be as long as 80 meters, and the monopoly towers are also huge, so it’s impossible they will locate inland. They prefer areas with ports, and shipbuilding capabilities so they can easily transport the products from the manufacturing base to the project areas,” he said.
The companies were closing in on a particular location and might install the facilities near each other, he said.
Rodolfo said Japanese companies visiting the Philippines also cited the country as a strategic location for big ticket renewable projects because of the increasing demand for renewable energy and its geographic location.
He said the Philippines is not only open for renewable energy projects generating sustainable power for domestic and overseas demand, but also accommodates projects engaged in the production of equipment and components used by renewable energy (RE) companies.