DBP extends P77 billion loans to energy sector

MANILA, Philippines — State-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has financed 92 projects worth P77 billion as part of its program to expand electricity access in the Philippines, especially in far-flung areas.

DBP president and CEO Michael de Jesus said as of end-2022, DBP’s Financing Utilities for Sustainable Energy Development (FUSED) program has approved P77 billion in loan financing.

FUSED program is DBP’s flagship credit facility that prioritizes increased access to electricity services in the countryside.

It is also aimed at supporting the government’s energy projects focused on promoting affordable, reliable and sustainable solutions to the country’s power needs.

Of the 92 approved, 27 of which are renewable energy (RE) projects amid the need to bring down the country’s dependence on energy imports by developing RE and indigenous sources.

Data showed that only 29 percent of the country’s current energy mix comes from renewables. The Department of Energy would like to bring it up to 35 percent by 2030 or to 50 percent by 2040, as outlined in the RE roadmap.

“We also expect that by 2030, we have funded P58 billion of the estimated investment requirements for power generation and distribution indicated in the Philippine Energy Plan 2012-2030,” De Jesus said.

This is higher than the original estimate of P40 billion that will be used to finance power generation and distribution under the energy plan started under the Aquino administration.

Among DBP’s latest financed energy projects is the 13.2-megawatt wind farm project of PetroWind Energy Inc. where it was granted a P1.8 billion loan fund.

This will be constructed south of the operating 36 MW Nabas-1 wind power project in Aklan and is expected to augment the existing power supply in the Visayas grid.

It is also seen boosting local employment and generating additional jobs for at least 400 people during the project’s construction period.

DBP is the eighth largest bank in the country in terms of assets. It provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy namely, infrastructure and logistics, MSME, environment, and social services and community development.