Marcos opens solar irrigation system in Cagayan amid El Niño threat
The project cost more than ₱98.6 million and is expected to supply water to 602.63 hectares of ricefields across five barangays.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. inaugurated a hybrid solar irrigation facility in Barangay Gattu, Cagayan, on October 26, 2026, to help farmers facing the threat of a very strong El Niño.
The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said 307 farmers from the Nagtipunan Kakampi Irrigators’ Association and Gattu Irrigators’ Association are expected to benefit. The project cost more than ₱98.6 million, according to GMA Regional TV.
The facility is expected to irrigate 602.63 hectares across five barangays. Its equipment includes 384 solar panels and three submersible pumps powered by solar energy, with three electric pumps available as backup, the PCO said.
Farmers welcomed the project as their second cropping season approached. They said rain from Super Typhoon Rosal, known internationally as Champi, had brought relief after several weeks without rainfall in Cagayan.
The Department of Agriculture said the system aims to improve productivity and food security while reducing reliance on rainfall. It also stocked the reservoir with tilapia fingerlings that could provide extra income when harvested.
Before the inauguration, the National Irrigation Administration provided Cagayan irrigators’ associations with more than ₱4.8 million in subsidies for operations and maintenance.
