The government, through the Department of Energy (DOE), has received nearly PHP1.7 billion in royalty payment from integrated energy company Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) for the second quarter of the year. In a statement Tuesday, SMPC said this is the highest quarterly royalty payment to the government after the firm recorded a revenue of PHP14.8 billion from April to June 2021. SMPC’s revenue in the second quarter of 2021 was supported by all-time high coal sales and higher average selling prices. Of the PHP1.7 billion turned over to the government, PHP1 billion will go to the national government that can be used to fund programs to fight coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Some PHP666 million will go to local government units (LGUs) that host SMPC mine sites --PHP136 million for the province of Antique, PHP300 million for the municipality of Caluya, and PHP230 million for Barangay Semirara. Under the Local Government Code of 1991, host LGUs of petroleum, coal, geothermal, hydrothermal, and wind facilities shall receive 40 percent of the royalty proceeds. “The pandemic has taken a significant toll on our country. We hope that our contribution can help boost our government’s response against Covid-19,” SMPC president and chief operating officer Maria Cristina Gotianun said. SMPC is the country’s lone power producer that mines its own fuel source --integrating its coal mining and power operations to create a local value chain. Based on its website, SMPC generates 900 megawatts of power with an additional 1,200 MW of coal-fired power in the pipeline.

Photo Credit: Panay News Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the country may expect additional 7,712 megawatts of power supply from 2021 to 2027. During President Rodrigo Duterte’s Talk to the People late Thursday night, Cusi said the construction of new power sources is underway this year and in the coming years to augment the needed power requirements as the Philippine economy continues to expand. He said between 2016 and 2020, installed capacity grew from 21,424 MW to 26,287, increasing by 4,863 MW. Cusi added that the energy stakeholders have been preparing for the anticipated depletion of the Malampaya natural gas field through building new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities and exploration of indigenous power sources. By next year, two LNG projects are expected to go online—the LNG project of AG&P and Osaka Gas by the second quarter and the LNG facility of First Gen and Tokyo Gas by third quarter, Cusi said. “Aside from LNG, we continue to pursue the exploration of our indigenous resources like gas and oil in the West Philippine Sea,” the energy chief said in Filipino. He added five service contracts were awarded since the government lifted the ban on exploration activities in the West Philippine Sea last year. “The agency has recommended the awarding of four more service contracts for exploration in the West Philippine Sea,” Cusi added. He said the DOE continues to partner with the international community to study potential power sources in the future. The DOE has partnered with Australian and Japanese firms to study hydrogen as the fuel of the future. Cusi said the Nuclear Energy Program Inter-Agency Committee is also looking into the potential of nuclear energy to be part of the country’s energy mix. He said the DOE assures there is a sufficient supply of power across the country, additional power capacity to be installed in the coming years amid the growing demand, and lowering power rates.   Article Courtesy of the Philippine News Agency

The PH-EITI National Conference 2021 was held last July 29 with the theme "Resiliency in Transparency".    PH-EITI or Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, is a government-led, multi-stakeholder initiative that implements EITI. The initiative started on 26 November 2013 under Executive Order No. 147, series of 2013. It is a government commitment first announced through EO No. 79, s. of 2012. The initiative aims to promote the open, accountable management and good governance of oil, gas and mineral resources industries. The three-hour webinar/conference featured various keynote speakers.[1]   “This is the second year that we are holding this meeting online due to the pandemic. This underscores the exceptional circumstance under which we have to operate into the foreseeable future. Nevertheless, I congratulate the EITI for its efforts to organize this national conference and produce an annual report despite all the challenges.” This was part of the Opening Remarks given by Hon. Carlos G. Dominguez, Secretary of Department of Finance.