BACKGROUND

WWF-Philippines has been working as a national organization of the WWF network since 1997 and spearheads campaigns on climate change adaptation and mitigation while infusing sustainability into the lives and businesses of Filipinos. We partner with local government units, especially cities, to develop them to be potential leaders towards a climate-resilient and low-carbon future. 

WWF-Philippines is engaged with the City Government of Butuan for the project, Financing and Integrating Renewable Energy in the City of Butuan, which builds the capacity of the local stakeholders in energy development planning through a series of technical workshops and writeshops to empower them to assess energy development proposals technically and financially while optimizing the use of clean and indigenous energy resources, in accordance with the project output, the Butuan City Energy Development Plan (BEDP). The draft BEDP that the Technical Working Group has produced is currently under a series of consultations. 

The next phase involves identifying two (2) pilot RE projects as per BEDP, which entails conducting two (2) pre-/feasibility studies that would give the stakeholders a tool for better decision-making and one with the least negative impact on the environment. The endeavor should not be limited to technical and economic analyses but also develop together with financing institutions the best financing products to facilitate the implementation of the RE projects with the end goal of an inked agreement by the two parties – RE developer and a bank.

Increasing the mitigative capacities of Butuan City and financing institutions for renewable energy development will set a precedent for other local governments and financing institutions to follow in accessing financing for tapping indigenous renewable energy resources.

Lessons from this project can be shared by Butuan City with other city governments so that they may utilize the same process and build their own mitigative capacities, leading to overall more significant amounts of national GHG mitigation by the Philippines through the substitution of fossil fuel-based power generation with economically and technically viable renewable energy facilities.

KEY DELIVERABLES

Following the milestones of the FINRE-Butuan project under OUTPUT II and III, the following are the necessary results to be had from this consultancy agreement:

• Two Pre-FS studies of RE pilot projects from the BEDP
• Two Financing products of the RE pilot projects identified above 
• Two Agreements applying item #2 above (inked between the RE developer and the bank)
• Develop a Rooftop Solar PV program that will encourage uptake by the residential and commercial power consumers in Butuan City.

Activities to be included:

• Activity 1: Conduct financing inception workshop with stakeholders, i.e. financing institutions and energy developers
• Activity 2: Conduct pre-/feasibility study of renewable energy venture in Butuan City (on biomass and solar RE sources) 
• Activity 3: Consult financing product and pre-/feasibility study with non-/Butuan based financing institutions and energy developers
• Activity 4: As a resource person, present the financing products during the launching of the Butuan City Energy Development Plan (BEDP)
• Activity 5: Conduct information and training workshops with relevant stakeholders (e.g., banks, energy developers, potential off-takers (design and prepare the workshop flow & content; also help identify and organize the participants list) 
• Activity 6: Conduct policy review and assessment and present a policy brief impacting the Just Energy Transition goals in the Philippines from the financing perspective
• Activity 7: Participate in energy-/finance -related events to share BEDP financing products and project learnings, including the RE Summit, the project wrap-up meeting, and other events that may be requested by the PMU or the local energy stakeholders
• Activity 8: Documentation of activities and events

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. The Consultant shall be working closely with and report to the Project Management Unit (PMU) of FinRE-Butuan (WWF-PH), LGU-Butuan’s Technical Working Group, and coordinate with the BEDP planning consultants from UP EEIRDFI.
2. The Consultant and his/her team shall work closely with financing institutions and potential renewable energy developers.
3. The PMU expects the Consultant to report the progress of each output bi-weekly or at the PMU progress review meetings, including the Butuan Advisory Power Development Council.
4. The Consultant is expected to closely liaise and collaborate with relevant project stakeholders in the course of performing the work (e.g., national government agencies, power sector companies, financing institutions, etc.)

Timeframe

• The envisaged time frame of this consultancy is 180 days or 6 months, starting from the 20th of September 2023 and ending on the 30th of March 2024.
• The PMU will require 5-8 days to review any output delivered by the consultant

COMPETENCIES

• Education - Minimum of Master’s Degree or higher in Engineering, Energy Technology, Energy Economics, or related field 
• Experience
  • Minimum of 10 years of demonstrable experience in the energy industry, policy development related to renewable energy options (especially related to biomass energy), institutional analysis and process improvements for better results
  • Broad experience in the energy sector project/ programme developments
  • Demonstrated experience in the proposal development and implementation of RE power plants
  • Strong understanding of operations of RE technologies, supply chains, their financial and economic impacts and a good background knowledge of the energy industry in the Philippines and Asia
  • Strong understanding of global and national climate change and environmental issues