PXP woos foreign partners for oil, gas exploration

MANILA, Philippines — PXP Energy Corp. is seeking foreign investments to pursue new upstream oil and gas opportunities beyond areas covered by the West Philippine Sea exploration ban.

“We have to raise money for PXP for the various service contracts, so we’re inviting foreign partners to join us,” PXP chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said in a chance interview.

He said the company had reached out to Chinese firms for capital and support in exploring areas that are within Philippine jurisdiction and free from territorial disputes.

PXP’s existing core assets — Service Contract 72 Recto Bank and SC 75 Northwest Palawan — remain under force majeure amid ongoing geopolitical tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

Still, Pangilinan stays confident in the long-term potential of these assets, while PXP continues to pursue other government-awarded petroleum deals across the country.

“In the long run, I think we should do it. Because if you want energy independence, it’s best to have indigenous fuel (sources) like solar and wind,” he said.

Through its joint venture partnerships, PXP was awarded SCs 80 and 81 last year, marking the first petroleum deals granted within the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

SC 80 covers 780,000 hectares and hosts the Dabakan and Palendag gas discoveries previously explored by ExxonMobil, while SC 81 spans 532,083 hectares with several wells showing potential oil and gas prospects.

These blocks are located in the Sulu Sea, which remains underexplored.

PXP, along with its partners, also bagged SC 86, encompassing around 132,000 hectares in the Malajon area of northwest Palawan.

Pangilinan noted, however, that any oil and gas prospects from these contracts would take years of exploration before reaching production.

Asked whether PXP is interested in exploring for native hydrogen, he replied, “Yes.”

This comes after the government integrated native hydrogen exploration into the existing petroleum service contract system to provide investors with a clearer regulatory framework.

Native hydrogen is a naturally occurring resource found beneath the Earth’s surface, unlike conventional hydrogen, which is produced through industrial processes.