The Iloilo City Council has endorsed First Gen Visayas Energy Inc. to conduct a feasibility study (FS) for its proposed Iloilo Strait Wind Power Project.

City Councilor Romel Duron, chairperson of the committee on energy and public utilities of the Sangguniang Panlungsod, said the city government has been endorsing renewable energy because it is environment-friendly.

The council unanimously passed the resolution in support of the FS during its regular session on Wednesday.

“We can save on expenses if ever because the source is wind. But there are still consultations, and they still have to secure a resolution of no objection (RONO) from us,”Duron said in an interview on Thursday.

The project involves the construction and installation of approximately 25 wind turbine generators and a transmission line to connect its wind farm component to a substation of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.

The wind farm has an estimated total gross capacity of up to 100 megawatts.

The FS will involve data gathering and analysis of information based on the forecast demand for renewable energy, taking into consideration different mechanisms provided under Republic Act 9513 or the Renewable Energy Act of 2008.

Duron said the target areas are barangays Ingore, Hinactacan, Balabago, and Bitoon in Iloilo City and some towns of Iloilo province and Guimaras, particularly in the municipality of Buenavista.

The proponent has also secured the endorsements of barangays that will be affected by the project, he added.

“We all know that First Gen Visayas is a Lopez-owned company and is also operating wind turbines in Ilocos. According to them, considering that they are from Iloilo, they are returning here to invest in Panay and Western Visayas,” he said. (PNA)