[ad_1]
The Philippine government will no longer approve applications for the new construction of coal-fired power plants, the country’s energy chief Alfonso Cusi announced on Tuesday (October 27).
The moratorium is based on a recent review of the country’s energy requirements, which sought a “resilient and flexible” energy mix amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Cusi, the Philippines’ energy secretary, said at a conference that was part of 13.th Singapore International Energy Week.
“While we have initially adopted a technology neutral policy, our regular assessment of our country’s energy requirements is paving the way for innovative adaptations in our policy directions,” he said in a prerecorded speech. “We are also driving the transition from the use of oil-based technology to cleaner energy sources, which includes liquefied natural gas, to ensure more sustainable growth for the country.”
The Philippines is projected to have the largest share of coal in the region’s energy mix in 2030, and Tuesday’s announcement may drown some 10 gigawatts (GW) of coal in the pipeline, shaping “a future where everyone Filipinos have access to clean and affordable energy, ”said Gerry Arances, executive director of the non-governmental research center Center for Energy, Ecology and Development (CEED).
The new policy is expected to affect the plans of the country’s largest conglomerate, San Miguel Corporation, whose subsidiaries have 3.6 GW of coal power in the pipeline. But its president and chief operating officer, Ramon Ang, told Philstar news outlet that the company would abide by the rules. AC Energy of Ayala Corporation said it supported the new directions, while Aboitiz Power said the new policy would not affect its long-term plans, Philstar reported.
Arances urged the government to phase out the 9.8 GW of coal currently installed in the country and cancel the four GW of committed coal projects, as the department’s new policy does not cover applications that have already been approved or have obtained the necessary permits.
Coal, the largest source of global warming, is estimated to account for 52.3% of the 396.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emitted annually by the country in 2030, according to the Philippine Power Plan.
Although it took Cusi more than a year to follow up on President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching order to reduce the country’s dependence on coal, Arances said he is “excited” with the announcement. In 2019, Cusi rejected a ban on new coal projects until the country achieved energy security.
Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of the Asian Peoples Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD), was skeptical of the policy statement, calling it “temporary.”
“[A moratorium] it can be revoked or lifted at any time. So this new moratorium on coal is effective only until the next base load capacity additions are needed, ”Nacpil said. Base load power refers to power sources that meet the country’s minimum electricity demand.
Sara Ahmed, an energy finance analyst at the Institute for Energy Economic and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), welcomed the development, citing how “outdated technologies should no longer be used.”
“This is a clear policy signal to modernize our energy sector and also for imported coal plants to take a backseat, and rightly so, amid lower-cost domestic options for renewables,” Ahmed told Eco -Business.
“It is clear that the Department of Energy is pushing for cost competitiveness to offer lower prices to consumers and industry and more national energy security.”
Cusi’s announcement comes amid the department’s push to use nuclear power to solve the precarious supply and rising costs of electricity in one of the fastest growing economies in the region.
Relaxed foreign ownership for geothermal projects, but at what cost?
He also announced that the Philippines will allow 100 percent foreign ownership in geothermal energy projects worth $ 50 million or more, through Financial and Technical Assistance Agreements (FTAA).
FTAAs could be concluded between foreign contractors and the Philippine government for the exploration, development and large-scale use of natural resources, and are signed by the president.
But the legal basis for an FTAA on geothermal projects needs to be studied further, as there is no provision on it in the 2008 Renewable Energy Act, warned Arances, who is also the national coordinator of the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice.
“The FTAAs, in our experience, have always been biased towards the interest of foreign entities as it has been for mining,” he said. “It goes with many incentives for foreign entities. It is as if we do not have at least capable local corporations ”.
