AKLAN — Yuchengco-led PetroWind Energy, Inc. (PWEI) is expanding the capacity of its Nabas wind farm by targeting the completion of the remaining three turbines by 2025.
“Nabas-2 remains the only new power plant connected to the Panay sub-grid since the island-wide grid outage in January 2024,” PWEI Senior Manager Jayson A. Abaniel told reporters.
“PWEI is therefore supportive of the government’s grid enhancement project in Aklan, as it will help reduce the risk of generation curtailment at PWEI’s wind farm, leading to more stable power generation and the continued opportunity to supply clean power to the grid,” he added.
PWEI is a joint venture of PetroGreen Energy Corp., the renewable energy arm of Yuchengco-listed company PetroEnergy Resources Corp., and Thailand’s BCPG Public Co. Ltd.
The Nabas-2 project is located south of the existing 36-megawatt (MW) Nabas-1 wind power project, which has been transmitting power since 2015.
PWEI started the second phase of the Nabas-1 wind power project in November last year, which would add six turbine generators to the existing 18 of the first phase.
Once the installation of the remaining three 2.2-MW turbines is completed, the expansion will enable the company to increase the wind project’s capacity to 49.2 MW from 36 MW.
The company secured the service contract for the Nabas wind farm from the Department of Energy in 2009, hoping to export power to the Visayas grid.
Multiple power plants tripped on the second day of the year on Panay Island, causing a major power outage in the Western Visayas. Power was restored three days later.
PWEI’s Nabas wind farm accounts for 4-5% of the demand in the island province. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera