The Cebu Provincial Board approved a resolution authorizing the Provincial Legal Office to secure a Department of Environment and Natural Resources permit for clearing trees on 187 hectares in Daanbantayan.
The 150-megawatt solar project faces ongoing controversy regarding the provincial government’s use of tax forfeiture to acquire land from local owners after negotiations over purchase prices failed to reach an agreement.
The P7.5-billion solar plant is a 25-year public-private partnership expected to commence operations by December 2026, aiming to supply electricity to over 300,000 people across the Visayas region.
THE Cebu Provincial Board (PB) has officially backed a resolution to clear trees across 187 hectares of land in Barangay Talisay, Daanbantayan. This major step paves the way for a massive 150-megawatt solar power plant at the northern tip of Cebu.
Approved during a regular session on Monday, July 13, 2026, the resolution was sponsored by PB Member Stanley Caminero. It authorizes Assistant Legal Kristina Ginn Estoy of the Provincial Legal Office (PLO) to represent Cebu in securing a tree-cutting permit from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
According to the resolution: “The cutting and or removal of trees within the subject properties, and the procurement of corresponding tree-cutting permit from the DENR, are necessary and incidental to the proposed project and are required under existing forestry and environmental laws, rules, and regulations.”
If approved, the tree-clearing will cover an area equal to about 4,285 to 4,452 professional basketball courts laid side-by-side. The move follows a previous provincial decision to convert the agricultural site into industrial land through the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).
While the solar plant promises clean energy, the land it sits on comes with serious controversy. Some local property owners claim the provincial government "did them dirty" to get the 187-hectare site.
The project originally held its groundbreaking on March 16, 2025, under former Governor Gwendolyn Garcia. During negotiations, 70 local landowners wanted to sell their properties for P400 per square meter, but the provincial government only offered P130.
To break the deadlock, the government used "tax forfeiture"—seizing the land because of unpaid real estate taxes. This land dispute was so intense that developer Acciona Energia almost pulled out of the project entirely. Today, Governor Pamela Baricuatro is moving forward with the solar plant despite inheriting these legal disputes.
The Daanbantayan Solar Project is the first public-private partnership for sustainable energy in Cebu. It operates under a 25-year build-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement between the Cebu Provincial Government and Spain-based Acciona Energia. The Power Construction Corporation of China (Power China) will build the plant.
Key terms of the 25-year agreement include:
Land Lease: The provincial government leases its newly acquired land to the developers for 25 years.
Revenue Share: The province will receive two percent of the solar plant’s total earnings.
Handover: Once the 25 years are up, full ownership of the land and the power plant goes back to the Cebu province.
Scheduled to start running by December 2026, the plant will be the largest solar facility in the Visayas region. It will use solar panels to turn sunlight directly into electricity, backed up by a giant battery storage system to keep the power flowing even when it is cloudy.
First recognized as a key clean energy project by the Board of Investments with a Green Lane Certificate on August 1, 2024, the plant is expected to produce 280GWh of electricity per year. Once fully operational, this P7.5-billion clean energy project will supply stable power to more than 300,000 people across the region. VEEJAY CATADMAN, UP CEBU INTERN
