Oil, gas exploration projects attract 13 applications

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s “Explore, Explore, Explore” program has generated 13 interested applications for the pre-determined areas for oil and gas exploration bared during last month’s launch. Eight parties have nominated new areas for oil and gas exploration activities.

“We have 14 pre-determined areas (PDAs) under Philippine Conventional Energy Contracting Program (PCECP) and 13 have applied for the pre-determined areas,” Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Donato Marcos said.

However, he declined to name which areas are sought after to avoid prejudice since this is a competitive selection process.

The DOE will have 180 days from the PCECP launch last Nov. 22 to receive technical, legal and financial compliance documents from the bidders.

Meanwhile, Marcos said there are also eight parties that nominated potential exploration areas which will be published.

For this round, the DOE will only give 60 days from publication for challengers to submit their counter offers, after which the proposals will be signed by the energy secretary and will be endorsed to the President for signing.

Under the PCECP, the DOE revised the investment mechanism. It provides a more investor-friendly environment which is consistent with the directions set by President Duterte.

The PCECP offers 14 pre-determined areas and gives investors the option to propose their own exploration area, making oil and gas exploration a dynamic investment prospect for players in the energy sector.

“There is so much untapped potential for energy exploration in the Philippines that is ripe for the picking as our energy needs grow every year. With the savings that we can generate from the utilization of our own energy resources, our economy and our people can reap huge benefits,” Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said earlier.

Presently, there are only 23 active Petroleum Service Contracts (PSC) in the country, with the Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power Project as the most successful PSC stemming from the previous Philippine Energy Contracting Round.

The application process under the PCECP has also been streamlined to provide potential investors with a quicker turnaround time for administrative and documentary requirements to prevent unnecessary delays.