SE Asia's lowest solar bid ever

Source: Tony Seba

The cost of solar PV has been plunging. In very sunny deserts, solar is now below 1.8 cents/kWh ($18/MWh).  Obviously, in non-desert places, even those in the low latitudes, rainfall reduces the output of solar which raises its cost.  And there is a learning curve, too.  It takes a while for all those involved to learn how to install solar, how to regulate it, how to integrate it into the grid.  Prolly Philippines solar will never be as cheap as solar in Mexico or Saudi Arabia, but this is not the end of the cost decline.

In a tender for 50 MW of solar, local PV module manufacturer and project developer, Solar Philippines submitted a bid of P2.34 (US$0.044) per kWh.

The Philippines-based solar company submitted an offer of P2.34 ($0.044) per kwh in a tender held by the country’s power utility, Meralco for 50 MW of solar power.

In a statement to pv magazine, company CEO, Leandro Leviste said the offer is currently the lowest bid for large-scale solar in Southeast Asia. The previous lowest offer was P2.99 ($0.056), which was submitted by the same company in a previous solar tender held by Meralco in 2017.

The Philippines recently moved from FITs to auctions for supporting the build out of large-scale solar. “While solar energy prices across Southeast Asia on average remain among the highest in the world, we hope these prices will lead the way towards solar prices across the region catching up with global standards,” Leviste  said.

[Read more here]

Once again, the Philippines isn't choosing solar to save the world.  Of course they care about global warming.  Global warming is making typhoons stronger, and that country was devastated by typhoon Haiyan in 2012.   They are installing solar because it's cheaper.

FYI, Manila's days of rainfall through the year:

Source: Weather Atlas