Solar panels appear on rooftops of houses at a village in Barangay Buluang, Busuanga, in Palawan on November 29, 2022, as ACCIONA, a Spanish sustainable infrastructure and renewable energy conglomerate, launches its Lights at Home Project that will install residential photovoltaic systems in off-grid homes. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File

MANILA — Various groups advocating for renewable energy launched the "10 Million Solar Rooftops Challenge" on Tuesday.

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During the Summit for Clean and Affordable Renewable Energy held in Quezon City, the initiative was introduced to urge government offices, the private sector, and organizations to join the advocacy of installing solar rooftops amid rising electricity costs and the climate crisis.

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The multi-sectoral advocacy is being pushed by around 20 organizations including the Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED), Caritas Philippines, Power 4 People, and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.

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CEED Deputy Executive Director Avril De Torres told ABS-CBN News that the 10 Million Solar Rooftops Challenge is a step towards transitioning to renewable energy to lessen fossil fuel emissions that contribute to climate change. 

De Torres added that renewable energy sourced from wind and solar is cheaper in the long run. 

“Sa pag-aaral ng CEED, nalaman natin na kaya mahal ang kuryente, isa sa pinakadalihan ang paggamit natin ng fossil fuels. Hindi lang marumi, mahal pa. Para sa amin, kung urban poor community nahihirapan magbayad ng bill, bakit hindi na lang magsolar rooftop?” De Torres said. 

(In studies conducted by CEED, we learned that one of the reasons why electricity is expensive is because we use fossil fuels. It is not just dirty but also expensive. For us, if the urban poor community is struggling to pay their electric bill, why not use rooftop solar instead?) 

The initiative aims to install a total of 10 gigawatts that can be utilized in households and target communities such as urban poor and indigenous communities, schools, and churches.

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Around 20 million households have no access to electricity, according to the Energy Regulatory Commission.

The Department of Energy has recognized the role of solar rooftops to achieve the Marcos administration’s 100 percent electrification target.

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“Naniniwala tayo na kaya natin mag-100 percent electrification kasi napakayaman natin sa renewable energy. Compared sa fossil fuels, pwede tayong magtayo nito kahit hindi konektado sa grid. Isa kasi ‘yan sa challenges natin. With solar rooftops, we agree with DOE na isa ito sa solusyon,” De Torres said.

(We believe that we can achieve 100 percent electrification because we are very abundant in renewable energy. Compared to fossil fuels, we can build it even if it is not connected to the grid. Because that is one of our challenges. With solar rooftops, we agree with DOE that this is one of the solutions.)

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Advocacy groups hope to enter into grants and partnerships to fund the installation of solar rooftops.

Organizations not included in the consortium may also register their rooftop solar installation initiatives to raise awareness of the advocacy.

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