Davao university gets P68-M for renewable energy research

DAVAO CITY -- Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU) has been granted PHP68.6 million by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) for its research and development (R&D) on a renewable energy project.

In an interview on Monday, DOST-11 Assistant Regional Director Mirasol Domingo said the project was proposed by Randell Espina of the Center for Renewable Energy and Appropriate Technologies (CREATE) AdDU's School of Engineering and Architecture.

Along with DOST's "grant on aid", the Ateneo de Davao University also put in a counterpart of PHP1.9 million.

Domingo said the project was approved by the Mindanao Renewable Energy R&D Center (MREC) under the Niche Centers in the Regions for R&D (NICER), a component for Science for Change (S4C) program of the DOST.

MREC is aimed at promoting, inspiring and supporting the conduct of research and development on Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs) addressing energy policy and utilization of RETs, the DOST official said.

The MREC will be housed at AdDU and is proposed to have RET research and development facilities, specifically the concentrated solar power (CSP) and the offshore renewable energy (ORE) technologies, which can be accessed and utilized by partner universities, organizations, and communities.

Domingo said the research center will pursue thematic societal research questions on appropriate and sustainable energy system and other vital large socio-technical that reinforce its sustainability.

She said the MREC will navigate in the three-pronged function of the university with a particular bias on R&D. MREC is open to all universities and individuals on the island who are engaged or planning to engage in renewable energy research and development and training. (Digna D. Banzon/PNA)