BACOLOD City – Some 125 pineapple farmers in Don Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental hope to boost their livelihood through the solar energy facility recently turned over by the European Union (EU) and the Department of Energy (DOE).
The Productive Use of Renewable Energy (PURE) project was the fourth pilot project (PURE4) of the EU and DOE in the Philippines in cooperation with the Team Energy Foundation Inc. (Tefi).
It supports the government’s efforts to offer solutions towards increasing access to electricity, integrating renewable energy on and off-grid and promote energy efficiency.
The P3.5-million project was turned over by officials led by DOE Visayas Field Office director Russ Mark Gamallo to pineapple farmer-members of the Bago Integrated Solar Farmers Association (BISFA), a community-based organization in Barangay Bago, Don Salvador Benedicto.
The project is comprised of a four-kilowatt (kW) solar power system, a decorticating machine, a two-kW photovoltaic (PV) system, and the building housing the systems.
According to Ma. Teresa Lopez, vice president of the Tefi, the project is seen to boost pineapple farmers’ monthly income to at least 20 percent; more economic activity in Barangay Bago; and increase the farmers’ economic potential through pineapple fiber production.
Mayor Marxlene De la Cruz said the PURE4 will help other hundreds of pineapple farmers affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
“If this becomes successful, they will replicate it in other barangays,” De la Cruz said.
The Central Negros Electric Cooperative, meanwhile, will provide the necessary support for maintenance, repair and troubleshooting of the equipment, according to its president Jojit Yap./PN
