Philippines : Buskowitz Rooftop Solar Project (ADB-57065-001)

Regions
  • East Asia and Pacific
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Philippines
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Bulacan, Laguna, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Bacolod, Misamis Oriental, Zamboanga
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • Asian Development Bank (ADB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
C
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Oct 27, 2023
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Buskowitz Solar Inc.
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Energy
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 12.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 12.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ ADB website

Updated in EWS Jan 15, 2024

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

As stated by the ADB, the project consists of a senior secured loan of up to $12 million in peso equivalent from ADB's ordinary capital resources to finance the development, construction, and operation of a portfolio of photovoltaic power systems on the rooftops of commercial and industrial buildings in the Philippines of up to 70 megawatts (MW).

With ADB's assistance, the project will develop the nascent Philippine rooftop solar market, which has an installed capacity of 191.8 MW that is highly fragmented across more than 40 participants. The project will support a small to medium-sized company with a market niche, which would increase installed capacity by 36% and promote rooftop solar coverage in the urban areas outside Metro Manila in Luzon (Bulacan, Laguna, Pampanga, and Pangasinan); Visayas (Bacolod); and Mindanao (Misamis Oriental and Zamboanga).

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

The ADB categorized the project risk as follows:

Environment C
Involuntary Resettlement C
Indigenous Peoples C
Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.
Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated in project documents, Buskowitz Solar Inc. is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) incorporated by Buskowitz Energy Inc. (BEI) to own, build, and operate the Project. BEI provides engineering, procurement, and construction, and operations and maintenance services for solar rooftop systems in the Philippines. At present, BEI has already installed a total aggregate capacity of 35 MW in commercial buildings and residential. BEI was formed by merging Buskowitz Finance Inc. and Energy Renewables Asia Inc. in 2022.

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - Buskowitz Energy Inc. Client Energy

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

ADB Team Leader:

Michael Gabisch - Senior Investment Specialist

No contacts provided at the time of disclosure.

Client - Buskowitz Solar Inc.:

Address: 3rd floor, Dominion Building, 833 A. Arnaiz Avenue, Makati City 1200, Philippines
Email: info@buskowitz.com
Phone: +63 917 7137 912 / +63 2 88010074
Website: https://www.buskowitz.com/

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can submit an information request for project information at: https://www.adb.org/forms/request-information-form

ADB has a two-stage appeals process for requesters who believe that ADB has denied their request for information in violation of its Access to Information Policy. You can learn more about filing an appeal at: https://www.adb.org/site/disclosure/appeals

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF ADB

The Accountability Mechanism is an independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an Asian Development Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Accountability Mechanism, they may investigate to assess whether the Asian Development Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can learn more about the Accountability Mechanism and how to file a complaint at: http://www.adb.org/site/accountability-mechanism/main.

How it works

How it works