Government to fasttrack natural gas program

MANILA, Philippines - The government is already moving forward in its plans to fasttrack the country’s natural gas program for public vehicles.

More compressed natural gas (CNG) stations are under way as plans are being finalized, an official said.

“The investment on the daughter station has started. The technology evaluation is ongoing so we are hoping that will be finished soon,” Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said.

State-led Philippine National Oil Company- Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC) will spend P400 million in the next two years as the lead agency in the Natural Gas Vehicle Program from Public Transport (NGVPPT).

Specifically, PNOC-EC will upgrade existing facilities and build another daughter station.

Almendras said he is waiting for plans of PNOC-EC on the new daughter and mother station in Batangas.

“They are finalizing the plans and eventually they will have to bid out the construction of that,” Almendras said.

In a bulletin dated June 11, the PNOC-EC said it is seeking bidders for the supply, delivery, installation, testing and commissioning of CNG equipment package for a daughter station in Mamplasan, Biñan, Laguna.

Submission and bid opening is scheduled on July 3.

In April, PNOC-EC signed three memoranda of agreement “for the transfer to PNOC-EC of the lone set of mother and daughter CNG stations in Batangas and Laguna, which are owned by Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.”

PNOC-EC also took over the gas sales contract with the Malampaya consortium from Pilipinas Shell. It also agreed to provide CNG to bus operators.

Earlier, the state-owned oil and gas exploration firm said it plans to build another CNG station at the Philippine Ports Authority in Batangas.

The NGVPPT was formally created with the signing and implementation of Executive Order 290 in February 2004.

However, CNG bus operators have been criticizing the government’s lack of effort to promote the utilization of natural gas in the transport sector which, according to them, could prevent fare hikes and at the same time help attain a cleaner environment.