U.S. Donates Mobile Solar Power Units to Remote Palawan

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Three U.S.-donated mobile energy systems (MES) will soon bring clean, reliable electricity to remote and disaster-prone communities in Palawan, thanks to the ongoing partnership between the United States and the Philippines in energy development.

U.S. Ambassador MaryKay Carlson led the official turnover of the MES units on May 16 at the National Power Corporation (NPC) Irawan Switching Station in Puerto Princesa City.

She was joined by Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Raphael Lotilla, NPC President and CEO Fernando Roxas, USAID Philippines Mission Director Ryan Washburn, DOE Undersecretary Giovani Bacordo, and USAID Philippines Environment Office Director Ryder Rogers.

“The MES are not just equipment,” Ambassador Carlson said.

“They are essential tools of resilience and innovation that have been proven to provide power to some of the most remote locations in the country.”

“On behalf of the U.S. government, I thank the DOE, the NPC, the Energy Regulatory Commission, and all our partners for their leadership and collaboration in making sure that no Filipino is left in the dark, no matter where they live,” she added.

Each MES unit is equipped with 9.18 kilowatts of solar panels and a battery capacity of up to 70 kilowatt-hours.

This is enough to power 10 Filipino households for a day or support a disaster response team for a full week.

The system can run satellite internet connectivity, five computers, ten mobile phones, ten two-way radios, and two electric fans on a single charge.

The units will be integrated into microgrids maintained by the NPC to deliver critical power to underserved areas in Palawan.

Kaiser Marcelino of the USAID Energy Secure Philippines project explained that the MES units are equipped with special grid-forming inverters that enhance their ability to stabilize and power local networks.

This latest MES batch follows previous donations under USAID’s Energy Secure Philippines program.

In 2024, the U.S. turned over one MES unit to the DOE’s Emergency Operations Center in Manila and two more to the municipalities of Lal-lo and Santa Ana in Cagayan.

Four additional MES units are expected to be deployed in the Philippines later this year.

“Since launching the first MES unit last year, we have witnessed the MES units’ potential in action—from powering the DOE Emergency Operations Center during a blackout to enabling real-time government services in typhoon-hit areas of Cagayan,” Carlson said.

“These mobile systems are flexible and are proven to provide reliable power to local communities across the Philippines.”

The donation reinforces U.S. support for the Philippines’ clean energy goals and highlights the strategic partnership between the two countries in improving energy access, especially in underserved and off-grid areas.