Masdar and the Philippines Government have signed agreements relating to the development of 1GW of clean energy projects in the south-east Asian country.
Masdar’s implementation agreement with the Department of Energy (DoE) and memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Board of Investments of the Republic of the Philippines covers the development of solar, wind and battery energy storage systems (BESS) with a total capacity of up to 1000MW by 2030.
The signing ceremony of both agreements (pictured) was witnessed by Sultan Al Jaber, UAE minister of industry and advanced technology and chairman of Masdar and Raphael Lotilla, the Philippines’ secretary of energy.
The implementation agreement was signed by DoE undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara, and Masdar CEO, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, with the MoU exchanged between the Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to the United Arab Emirates, Alfonso Ferdinand Ver, and Masdar’s CEO.
The agreement, which will support the Philippines Energy Transition Program to achieve 35% renewable energy in power generation by 2030 and 50% by 2040, progresses the MoU on Energy Transition Cooperation signed in November 2024 between the Philippines and the UAE during the working visit of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Junior to the country, which identified renewable energy as an area of collaboration.
Al Jaber said: “This partnership marks a new chapter in the longstanding relationship between the UAE and the Philippines.
“By leveraging the UAE’s world-class expertise in renewable energy and the Philippines’ abundant natural resources, this agreement will create jobs, drive low-carbon socio-economic progress and expand global renewable energy capacity in line with the UAE Consensus.”
Lotilla said: “Building on the longstanding ties between our nations and the recent Energy Transition Cooperation agreement, we welcome Masdar’s proven leadership and expertise in delivering utility-scale renewable energy solutions.
“This collaboration will significantly advance our goal of achieving 35 percent renewable energy in power generation by 2030.”
The agreement marks Masdar’s entry into the renewables sector in the Philippines.
South-east Asia is a key investment destination for Masdar.
The company has developed the 145MW Cirata floating solar plant in Indonesia.
In February 2023, it entered the geothermal energy sector through a strategic investment in Pertamina Geothermal Energy.
Masdar also signed a landmark agreement with the Malaysian Investment Development Authority in 2023 for the development of 10GW of clean energy projects across the country.