Thursday, August 14, 2014

The Philippines Can Host the Largest Solar Rooftop in the World

I am all for harnessing solar energy. If my hubby and I can afford to install solar panels on our own roof, we will! SM's initiative is a good start. Imagine, if all SM malls are fitted with solar panels!

Press Release:

When SM sealed the deal with Solar Philippines to have 1.5MW of solar panels installed on the roof of SM North EDSA’s parking building, the Philippines’ potential of having the world’s biggest host of solar roof panels becomes real.


According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) – a national trade association based in the US – the highest total solar capacity installed on a commercial rooftop in the US  is that of Walmart’s, which is 65000 kW (65MW). 

The one to be installed on top of SM North Edsa’s parking building is a power station, meaning, its solar panels will be directly connected to a power grid – in this case, Meralco’s – to be distributed later to the power company’s customers. Right now, the largest that serves as a power station should be the one on top of the Toys “R” Us in NJ, which is 5.38MW. 


Considering that SM has 49 malls all over the Philippines, the mall giant then has the potential to become the biggest host of power stations in the world! That means more households will be able to enjoy the benefits of using solar energy as their power source. A 1.5MW solar station like SM’s can serve around 1,200 to 1,400 50-sqm houses. And since the cost of consuming solar energy will eventually decline after a few years, Meralco customers now have something to look forward to.

In the meantime, we shall be content with the fact that SM North Edsa will have the largest commercial solar rooftop project in the country so far. 


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