The Department of Energy (DOE) announced that they will set up a P2-billion trust fund over the next five years to support the development of renewable energy in the country which was jumpstarted by the passage of the Philippine Renewable Energy Act.

The fund would be sourced from different government agencies. At least 1.5% would come from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor), which regulates gambling in the country. Another source would be the Philippine Charity Sweeptakes Office (PCSO) which runs the government’s lottery program.
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Vortex Induced Vibrations (VIV) are the scourge of any man made structure encased in a moving fluid (be it air or water). Prof Michael Bernitsas of the University of Michigan however views them in a more positive light and is developing a way to harness power from the slow moving fluid.

He had already acquired some funding from the US Military to develop early prototypes which he hopes to test in a river soon. The system, which he dubbed VIVACE (vortex-induced vibration for aquatic clean energy), is of a modular design and can generate 51 watts per cubic meter of water flowing at three knots.
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A study conducted by the Renewable Energy Coalition states that the Philippines has the following renewable energy potential:

1. Geothermal - 4,531 MW
2. Hydro electric - 13,097 MW
3. Wind -76,600 MW
4. Wave - 170,000 MW
5. Biomass - 277 Million Barrels Fuel Oil equivalent (MBFOE)/year
6. Solar Power - 5 ~ 5.1 KwH per square meter per day.

According to the article this gives the Philippine about 204,228 MW of harvestable energy from renewable energy sources. However the figures do not seem to add up. I’m guess it’s a typo somewhere because if you add up all the MW’s and exclude Biomass and Solar you end up with 264,228 MW.
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The San Bernardino Strait in Northern Samar (between Samar Island and the Bicol Province) is to be the location of a wave power array which will benefit the residents of the coastal areas.

The project will be funded by the Italian Foreign Ministry and will cost €300,000. The project is expected to start on the latter part of the year when the turbines arrive. Construction is expected to last a year.
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