In February, data collection began among residents of San Miguel Bay in Camarines Sur for the Offshore Wind Power Project.
The 1,000-megawatt offshore wind farm project is one of three contracts for the Offshore Wind (OSW) project of the company Copenhagen Infrastructure New Market Fund Corp. (CINMF). The other two are the 650MW OSW in Samar and the 350MW OSW in Dagupan. The entire project is valued at ₱175 billion ($3 billion), and each service contract covers 25 years of operation.
This project will cover 23,307 hectares of sea in the towns of Sipocot, Cabusao, Calabanga, and Tinambac in Camarines Sur, and the town of Mercedes in Camarines Norte, most of which are considered municipal waters or seas reserved for small-scale fisherfolk. The area will host 110 to 160 wind turbines. Meanwhile, the 500kV transmission lines and substation will pass through the towns of Calabanga, Bombon, Magaro Milaor, and Naga City.
The company plans to start the project in the third quarter of 2026 and begin operations in 2028. So far, no public consultations have been conducted in the affected barangays.
Fisherfolk, their families, and residents near San Miguel Bay have expressed serious concern about the project on social media. The projects in San Miguel Bay will affect an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 small-scale fisherfolk.
“Fisherfolk will suffer. Their fishing grounds will shrink even more once the windmills are built,” Calabanga resident Jhun said.
“Small-scale fisherfolk who rely solely on the sea will suffer,” Chona, another resident, said.
“Please address the disadvantages of this project, like what one resident asked. People in the coastal area already struggle to fish. This destructive project will destroy the ocean ecosystem and will result in a further decline in fish catch. We oppose this project!” Naga City resident Hanna insisted.
“How will sea-dependent people earn their living? Would they still be able to send their children to school? What about the fisherfolk and those who rely on the sea here in Sabang? What will happen?” Sipocot resident Eleanor lamented.
CINFM, a company from Denmark, is affiliated with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP). It is also the first 100% foreign-owned company to be granted a wind energy service contract (WESC) by the Department of Energy (DOE) on March 30, 2023, giving it exclusive rights to explore and develop San Miguel Bay for wind energy to generate electricity.
ACEN Corp, an energy company of the Ayala Group, purchased a 25% minority stake in the project for ₱2.95 million.
NEXIF Ratch Energy, a Singapore-based company, also plans to build a 500MW offshore wind project in San Miguel Bay. This project is valued at ₱90 billion ($1.5 billion) and will cover 6,237 hectares offshore. The company has already obtained a “pre-development environmental compliance certificate” from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in March.
Aside from the offshore wind farms, Aboitiz Power Corp. is constructing a 58.5MW onshore wind farm in Barangay Pag-Oring Nuevo, Libmanan, Camarines Sur. It is scheduled to be completed in 2026.
According to public records, the DOE has awarded service contracts to 57 offshore wind projects across the Philippines.
