NREB to review PHL's renewable energy program this week

The National Renewable Energy Board is set to review the country's renewable energy (RE) program on April 18 and 19, a top agency official said over the weekend. According to NREB chairman Pedro Maniego Jr., the board will then submit its recommendations on speeding up RE development to the Office of the President, the Joint Congressional Power Commission, the Department of Energy (DOE), the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and other agencies. “It is one of our duties and functions under the RE Act to review the National Renewable Energy Program and recommend improvements. We should have done the review last year, but budget approval was delayed," he said. The program was launched in 2011 as the sector's roadmap for renewable energy development in the country. The Energy Department plans to triple the country's total generation of renewable energy in 2010 of 5,400 megawatts (MW) through the program. RE developers are also invited to submit position papers on the DOE's "first come, first served" policy in awarding installation targets. Maniego said that the input will form part of the RE review's report, adding that the policy had not been recommended by the board. — BM, GMA News