The Department of Energy (DOE) plans to hold a special Green Energy Auction (GEA) for 170 megawatts (MW) of waste-to-energy (WTE) capacity, targeting projects to be operational by 2028.
According to a draft proposal released Wednesday, the auction will cover facilities using thermal combustion to process municipal solid waste from Metro Manila, Bacolod, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, and Davao. Capacity allocation will include 120 MW for Metro Manila, 20 MW for Davao, and 10 MW each for the other three cities.
Developers will compete for fixed, incentivized power rates, with bids at or below reserve prices set by the Energy Regulatory Commission. The DOE has yet to set an exact auction date but indicated it could be held by January 2026.
The initiative aims to tap urban waste as a renewable energy source, with Metro Manila and other highly urbanized cities generating an estimated 6.12 million metric tons of solid waste—enough to produce about 335 MW of baseload power.
DOE data show that as of end-July 2025, the Philippines has 574 MW of operational biomass and WTE capacity, with only 8 MW coming from WTE facilities. A second auction for biomass and WTE projects is expected by mid-2026.
