Malacañang on Thursday commended the Department of Energy (DOE) on the launch of the Philippine Conventional Energy Contracting Program (PCECP), saying the initiative would aid the country’s efforts to ensure energy security, stability, and security.
Speaking on behalf of President Rodrigo Duterte, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said that “ensuring total electrification, as well as securing our energy stability and sustainability have always been a priority of this administration.”
This, according to Nograles, is why the President directed the DOE “to aggressively pursue strategies that would enable us to possess strong technical and financial capabilities to harness our petroleum resources.”
“With increasing energy demand, it is extremely urgent that we find vast new energy sources at the soonest possible time.”
“With increasing energy demand, as well as the forthcoming depletion of older oil and gas fields such as Malampaya, Galoc, Nido and Matinloc, it is extremely urgent that we find vast new energy sources at the soonest possible time,” said the newest member of the Cabinet.
The PCECP is the the DOE’s new Petroleum Service Contract (PSC) awarding mechanism. The PCECP aims to boost petroleum exploration in the country by allowing the entry of more upstream petroleum players via flexible modes of licensing.
The PCECP encourages investors to partner with the Philippine government to explore and develop the country’s oil and gas resources under one of the most favorable terms in the region.
Nograles lauded the DOE for going the extra mile “to ensure that the PCECP is fair, transparent, and discerning––so that only legitimate applications are recognized.”
“With our economy steadily growing, we cannot overstate the importance of achieving energy security.”
“Rest assured that the DOE and the entire Philippine government will go above and beyond to make doing business in the country easier and more attractive.”
The Palace official also lauded the DOE for “continuing to work with the energy sector’s stakeholders––such as electric cooperatives, renewable energy advocates, and the like––to ensure the energy security of our country.”
“It is my hope that you keep this up and go all out in your efforts so that we can literally and figuratively empower our nation, and empower our people, especially the hard-working probinsyanos,” added Nograles.
“With our economy steadily growing, we cannot overstate the importance of achieving energy security. As Secretary Cusi himself stated several days ago, we are ranked 70th in energy security and 96th in energy equity; clearly, we have work to do if we are to meet the energy requirements of what is forecasted to be the 20th largest economy by 2050. Because as we build, build, build, we must make also ensure that we lay the foundation for adequate, accessible, affordable power.
