BusinessMirror

Energy company makes solar energy panels accessible to more Filipinos

PHOTO BY CLÉMENT HÉLARDOT ON UNSPLASH

BY RIZAL RAOUL S. REYES

THE Philippines being a tropical country means that it gets a large amount of sunshine, so there is huge potential for solar energy. According to the Department of Energy, the country can harness the sun’s power as its radiation across the country has a power generation potential of 4.5 to 5.5 kWh per square meters per day.

If you’re a homeowner or a small to medium entrepreneur, what does this mean to you?

You can utilize the power of the sun by installing solar panels on your own roof. Eduardo Sahagun, president and CEO of PHINMA Solar Energy Corp. and director and executive vice president for construction materials, PHINMA Corp., said you will save around 21 percent of your total cost of power when you have solar panels in your home, office building, or business establishment.

“But when you go to net metering, it goes up to 40 percent savings. So if you’re typically paying P10,000, your power bill will come out to P6000 pesos,” said Sahagun, who is also the president and CEO of Union Galvasteel Corp. (UGC), PHINMA Solar Energy Corp. (PHINMA Solar), and PhilCement Corp. (PhilCement).

Net metering is the first step in the shift from the traditional generation-transmission-distribution scheme toward individual and community based distributed on-site power generation. Net metering is a scheme which allows individuals or companies with their own renewable energy facilities, such as solar panels, to use electricity whenever needed while contributing their production to the grid.

PHINMA Solar, formerly known as Trans-Asia Wind Power Corp., is now 100 percent owned by Union Galvasteel Corp.

The company’s primary focus is to construct, develop, own, operate, manage, repair and maintain solar power generation plants, to generate electricity from such power plants, and to market and sell the electricity produced thereby.

“The company’s founders—ambassador Ramon Del Rosario Sr., Ernesto Escaler, and Don Felimon Rodriguez—were the country’s original industrialists. They also put up the Asian Institute of Management. They founded PHINMA at a time when people thought only foreigners can manage big companies. They have proven otherwise,” said Sahagun, who rejoined the company in 2017 after retiring from cement company Holcim, to whom PHINMA sold its cement operation in 2004.

The company has evolved from a lease model to a sale-on-installment model to maximize cashflow and soften exposure on fluctuation in the energy generation and prices. As a company, PHINMA Solar has made its presence felt in the retail market with its

HAVE you ever experienced a strange symptom, searched it online, and ended up convinced you have a rare terminal disease? With the digital world within reach, it’s all too easy to get lost in the sea of unvetted online health articles and scare stories. These often leave people more confused than ever, and most of the time unnecessarily worried.

What if there’s a safer, smarter way to manage your health worries? Now, a real doctor is just a tap away. Thanks to the Internet, professional medical help is now accessible without leaving your home or even your bed. KonsultaMD, the country’s leading health tech platform, offers a solution for medical inquiries big and small. With its newest service, Konsulta Plus, you can now chat with a real-life doctor any time of day, any day of the week.

Energy to Ayala, we carved out the rooftop solar business since we have always been in the roofing business and our chairman [Ramon del Rosario Jr.] is looking at sustainability. We think we don’t need to convert land, which is for agriculture. There are a lot of available roofs to generate power so we thought that rooftop solar is where we should go. Since we are in the roofing business and also into solar energy, we saw the synergy. What binds the two businesses to the cement business is our customers. The one that buys cement also buys roofing and could also possibly buy solar panels,” he said.

As the CEO of PHINMA Solar, Sahagun strongly believes that solar energy will help Filipinos.

“The panels will last for 25 years and in three years you’ll pay off everything, so you have more than 20 years of your own free power. You can imagine how much the savings will be with free power from the sun. That will impact the lives of Filipinos, plus small and medium entrepreneurs,” he said.

This isn’t just a robot sending automated responses—it’s actual advice from certified medical professionals. And what’s more, it’s budget-friendly.

With just P150 per month, you can get unlimited access to quality medical consultations whenever you need them.

With KonsultaMD’s new offering, you can also skip the queue and get your prescription online.

Instead of hoping the internet leads you to the right over-the-counter medicine, let a licensed professional prescribe exactly what you need. With Konsulta Plus, you won’t have to wonder if you’re taking the right meds. Its licensed doctors will ensure you get the correct treatment when you need it. Plus, you can even buy your prescribed medicine through the KonsultaMD SuperApp and have it delivered to nation-building efforts.

After a three-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, RVR Siklab Awards is ready to present the three winners for this year’s search in July.

“The RVR Siklab Awards aims to recognize youth entrepreneurs who demonstrate exceptional leadership in their respective fields through organizing and managing sustainable businesses, social enterprises, or self-initiated programs that uplift the lives of others,” said Peter Angelo Perfecto, vice president for public affairs.

“The youth has and will always be a key component in building the foundations for a better future. If we want genuine social change to happen, the private sector should not proceed with business as usual. Businesses should empower, lead and transform the next generation into good leaders and nation-builders our country needs,” said Ramon R. del Rosario Jr., PHINMA chairman and CEO and RVR Siklab Awards Board of Judges co-chairman. ■ your doorstep anytime 24/7.

“Our mission at KonsultaMD has always been to make health care accessible to all Filipinos, no matter where they are or what time it is. With Konsulta Plus, we’re one step closer to achieving this goal. For the price of a cup or two of your favorite coffee, you can have a doctor on call 24/7. We believe that good health shouldn’t be a privilege for a few, but a right for all. And with Konsulta Plus, we’re making that more attainable than ever,” said Cholo Tagaysay, CEO of KonsultaMD.

Konsulta Plus makes managing your health as easy as checking your phone. It’s time to say goodbye to self-diagnosing and hello to convenient, professional, and affordable health care.

THE Philippines has an incredible potential to become a major coding hub in Southeast Asia, according to Cebu-based software development consulting firm Symph. “Our country is brimming with talented individuals who possess a natural affinity for creativity and adaptability. We have seen a surge in the local tech industry, with innovative startups emerging and making waves on a global scale,” said Dave Overton, CEO of Symph in an e-mail interview BUSINESSMIRROR

Overton underscored one of the country’s strengths is its proficiency in the English language, which enables Filipino coders to effectively communicate and collaborate with international clients and teams. He stressed this advantage puts the Philippines as an attractive outsourcing destination for companies seeking top-notch coding expertise.

He commended the establishment of a supportive government-led ecosystem that has blossomed in the Philippines, with the rise of co-working spaces and incubators which provides fertile ground for coding talents to flourish. “The combined efforts of the private and public sectors in investing in education and infrastructure will further fuel the growth of the local coding scene,” he said.

As a part of their contribution to develop a substantial pool of skilled Filipino coders, Overton said Symph harnesses the strenghts of people to develop their potential. He said one of the approaches of Symph is raising awareness for interested individuals in the community on how they can go about their developer journeys, and how software and technology can change their lives for the better.

“The people in our team actively engage in community programs here in the Philippines and even other parts of Asia. We partner with schools and organizations, and developer communities to give tech talks, host coding boot camps, Design Thinking workshops, Ideation, startup mentoring and even hackathons that provide hands-on experiences for young aspiring coders early in their careers,” Overton explained.

“One recent example would be the Design Thinking Workshop we did with the Department of Budget and Management in the Philippines to identify challenges, define problems, and work toward resolving them using problem-solving techniques. As Symph, we plan to keep going with this effort as we currently also continue to have conversations with community builders on what other needs we can fill,” Overton added.

Overton said forming a partnership with the academe is a crucial part of their strategy because they “firmly believe that the youth are the future torchbearers of innovation, and we want to provide them with the best resources and support to embark on their coding journey.”

Enjoy PHL CAN BE AN ASEAN POWERHOUSE IN CODING

One of the products of Symph is John Dave Natividad, one of the company’s programmers who built SCode Studio. Through SCode, Overton said programming education is more accessible to the Filipino youth, especially those who don’t have computers. SCode Studio is a mobile coding Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and platform that lets you build and run software projects on your phone.

“Overall, our plans include forging partnerships with schools and universities to introduce coding as an integral part of the curriculum. We are providing mentorship programs to Symph’s interns, internship opportunities, and even support in developing coding-focused courses. We are also open to discuss ideas with the government as to what we can do to help identify and bridge gaps,” Overton explained.

“By working hand-in-hand with the academe, we can ensure that coding becomes an accessible and valued skill for the youth,” he added.