SOLAR POWER. The rooftop of the Perpetual Help Community Cooperative, Inc. in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental has solar panels installed to reduce its carbon footprint. The cooperative said that on its first monthly billing after installation, its average power consumption has been reduced by as much as 30 to 40 percent. (PNA photo by Mary Judaline Flores Parlow)
DUMAGUETE CITY – The Perpetual Help Community Cooperative, Inc. (PHCCI) here is reaping the benefits of its solarization project with a savings of about 40 percent in its monthly electric bill.
Cliffordson Lariosa, PHCCI chief operating officer (COO), told the Philippine News Agency on Monday that their first monthly billing following the installation of the solar panels two months ago showed a huge drop in consumption.
“The average reduction of our monthly power consumption now is between 30 to 40 percent or sometimes even more,” Lariosa said.
Before the installation of solar power, Lariosa said the PHCCI main office has an average monthly bill of PHP200,000.
The cooperative’s daily operations run from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., but there are air-conditioning units, automated teller machines, and servers working 24 hours a day, causing additional power consumption.
The official said the solar project is part of the PHCCI’s programs to reduce carbon footprint in support of global efforts to combat climate change by using clean and renewable energy.
Meanwhile, Lariosa said the cooperative would offer loans next year to interested residential owners who wanted to power their home with solar.
The maximum loanable amount is PHP200,000 and payable in seven years.
Installation of the solar panels and the entire system will be done by a third party or supplier but is already included in the loan package, he added.
Lariosa said they plan to have all PHCCI offices in Negros Oriental and other parts of the country partly powered by solar energy. (PNA)
