Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Legarda Leviste – Photo courtesy from Leandro Legarda Leviste/Facebook.
The Department of Energy (DOE) has imposed financial sanctions totaling about ₱24 billion on Solar Philippines Power Project Holdings Inc. after terminating dozens of its government-awarded contracts for failure to deliver committed power output.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin said the penalties stem from the cancellation of service agreements covering solar projects that did not meet development timelines.
Of the 163 energy projects scrapped by the DOE for noncompliance in 2024 and 2025, more than half were linked to Solar Philippines, a company founded by Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste.
Garin said many of the canceled deals involved contracts secured through the Green Energy Auction Program, alongside older agreements signed before the program was launched.
The terminated Solar Philippines projects were expected to contribute over 11,000 megawatts to the power grid, with most sites located in Luzon.
According to the DOE, repeated efforts to seek clarification or compliance plans from the company went unanswered before the contracts were revoked.
The ₱24-billion amount includes forfeited performance bonds and other financial obligations tied to the canceled projects, with collection efforts expected to proceed within the year.
Garin said the crackdown is part of a broader effort to weed out developers that fail to honor their commitments and delay the country’s renewable energy targets.
Overall, the DOE said the terminated contracts across all technologies represented nearly 18,000 megawatts of unrealized capacity.
The agency stressed that the enforcement action was not directed at any individual, noting that most of the other canceled projects belonged to smaller firms.
Solar Philippines and Leviste had not issued a response to the penalties as of press time, while the DOE said it is preparing stricter rules to prevent similar project delays.