SPNEC to use raised funds to buy land for solar plant

SOLAR Philippines Nueva Ecija Corp. (SPNEC) is allotting proceeds from its various capital raises to secure 2,500 hectares for its 3.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar farm project in Nueva Ecija and Bulacan.

“By the end of this year, our planned share issuances should result in the consolidation of ingredients that would enable SPNEC to expand its flagship project,” said Leandro L. Leviste, president and chief executive officer of SPNEC, in a media release on Wednesday.

SPNEC claimed that its expansion of operations in the area would be the world’s largest solar farm with a combined capacity of 4 GW and would also surpass the capacity of the total grid-connected operating solar plant in the Philippines at over 1.3 GW.

The company has secured an expansion of operations in the same area of land for its 500-MW solar project, for which the first 50 MW and the transmission for the full 500 MW are under construction.

According to SPNEC, the scale is made possible by Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc. (SPPHI), its parent firm, which secured land and permits for the said project in 2016, when (SPPHI) applied for its first Department of Energy solar energy service contract in the area.

In an earlier disclosure, SPNEC said that it targets to complete its asset-for-share swap deal with SPPHI by the end of this year, with its stock right offering to be completed in September.

SPPHI and SPNEC signed the share-swap agreement for the issuance of around 24.37 billion shares at P2.50 apiece. Once executed, SPNEC would acquire shares of SPPHI in a portfolio of projects. — Ashley Erika O. Jose