The Philippine Online Chronicles

Wind is generated as the fluid and gaseous parts of the atmosphere move across the surface of the earth due to the ever changing temperatures of the oceans, land masses and other features heated by the rays of the sun. The differences in the way these areas are heated allow for the variance in the amount of wind experienced by various locales.

The seas and land masses heat up and cool down in different rates so the wind is pretty strong in areas where these two geographical features meet. Despite the abundance of interface between shores and seas in the country – we do have over 7,000 islands – the effort to harness the power of the wind isn’t that popular as far as the government’s priorities are concerned. This sort of ambivalence towards the relative gains that could be gotten through the creation of wind farms is largely apparent in the entire continent of Asia. Other than China, India and Japan who are among leaders when it comes to the construction of wind farms and consumption of clean energy coming from the wind turbines, the rest of Asia lags as far as advocacy for this type of technology is concerned.

Enter Bangui

The town of Bangui in Ilocos Norte is one of the few shining examples in the region that wind power could be used to provide affordable and clean energy for a vast chunk of a province’s population and industry.

Bangui is a fourth-class municipality in one of the northernmost provinces in the Luzon landmass. It has a fairly small population of just a little over 14 ,000 and has a good stretch of coastline that serves as the home of the first wind turbine farm in the Philippines.

Bangui was picked from many other regions in the Philippines through a geological and meteorological survey done by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) when they conducted research to screen out for potential places in the country that could serve as good. There were other areas in the country that were deemed suitable for the installation of wind farms. The other areas on the list included certain parts of the islands of Mindoro, Samar, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Palawan and Eastern Mindanao.

As he has proudly featured in his advertisements on the lead up to his run for the Philippine Senate, Ferdinand “Bong Bong” Marcos Jr. – the son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos – was instrumental in making the vision of having a wind farm in the Ilocos region a reality.

Due to its location, the province always suffered from power outages. The power came from a power station in La Union, leaving the entire province vulnerable to inconvenient power failures that hampered not onli the citizens but local businesses and investors who have decided to set up shop in Ilocos.

The geography of Bangui is perfect for the wind farms. Much of the coastline is featureless and the ruggedness is virtually zero in the scale used by engineers who surveyed the area. This means that the wind goes through the area pretty much unimpeded and could easily drive the turbines and generators within the shaft of the wind mills. The coast faces the South China Sea – a very favorable body of water to face, considering all the monsoon activity that happens in the area.

The wind farm itself is operated by an independent power provider called Transco Laoag. Currently, there are 30 wind mill units along the entire stretch of the coast. Each wind turbine is said to be 60 meters high and were manufactured by the Vestas company. The wind farm has an installed capacity of 25 megawatts (MW) and a maximum capacity of 33 MW. At present, the wind farm supports about 40 percent of the power needed by Ilocos Norte, making the province less reliant on the power from La Union, which is still one province away.

In 2006, it was computed that the power generated by the wind farm allowed for over USD1 million (P45.46 million) in savings. It would still take time for the project to pay for itself as the entire price tag for the endeavour is said to have reached an eye popping sum of USD23 million (P1.04 billion). There are plans to expand the project further and almost double wind farm's capacity. It is projected that additions to the project made in the next 10 years could boost the ratio serviced by the wind farms to about 70 percent of Ilocos Norte's entire power requirment. It has been estimated that the project would cost over USD75 million (P3.4 billion) once the changes and developments have been made.

Aside from the amount saved in the process of making energy cheaper for the people of Ilocos Norte, the creation of the wind farms also allowed the province to be one of the most environmentally-friendly locales in the country. The wind farms hardly emit green house gases and are generally safe for the other ecosystems that exist within the area. The wind turbines themselves have become a big tourist attraction for the once sleepy town of Bangui.

Getting to Bangui

The town of Bangui is just ninety minutes away from Laoag. Most people in the area are likely to visit the resort town of Pagudpud – easily the most famous beach town in the Ilocos Region. Bangui is the town before Pagudpud so you could easily do the wind farm photo op along the way.

You can fly to Laoag City through various local carriers. Both Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines fly regularly to Laoag. There are various bus companies that operate along these routes. The most dependable and popular of these bus lines is Partas.

Moving forward

There are no visible plans on the horizon to create another wind farm similar to one in Bangui in the other parts of the country. However, with a key proponent of the Bangui project now in a position of power, this may change. This project may cost a lot of money in the beginning but the payoff ought to be worth it.