RP on track in renewable energy dev’t
Thursday, August 03, 2006
By MICHELINE R. MILLARMANILA (Dow Jones)
— Soaring world oil prices are providing a fresh impetus for the Philippines to develop renewable and indigenous sources of energy, with potential sources of as much as 4,900 megawatts of electricity and alternative fuel for transportation already identified, a senior energy official said.
Mario Marasigan, director of the Energy Utilization Management Bureau of the Department of Energy, said the government is trying to get Congress to quickly approve two bills that will provide incentives for investments in the development of renewable energy sources and biofuels.
"We are very confident that we can (meet our targets), both for the renewable energy and biofuels," Marasigan told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview.
He said the Philippine Energy Plan envisages the development of indigenous energy sources to reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil, thereby saving on foreign exchange allocation. The Philippines imports nearly all its oil requirements, mostly to supply the transportation industry.
Marasigan said the plan calls for the development of at least 2,500 MW of additional capacity from renewable sources such as geothermal, wind, solar and hydro within the next 10 years. He said the plan had already identified 4,500 MW to 4,900 MW of capacity that could be developed over the decade, provided that funds are available.
In the field of geothermal energy, the long-term goal is to overtake the US as the world’s premier producer of electricity from this energy source. He said the government is trying to attract investments to develop between 800 MW and 1,200 MW of additional capacity.
The Philippines, which is part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, is rich in geothermal energy and capacity currently stands at 1,931 MW. The energy plan projects capacity reaching 3,132 MW by 2013.
While the country has had over three decades of experience in producing electricity from steam coming from deep within the earth, it was only recently that the Philippines started developing wind farms.
Marasigan said the target is to develop the capacity to produce a total 400 MW compared with the current 25 MW. He said plans are being firmed up for further expansion of the country’s sole existing wind power plant by 10-15 MW.
State-owned PNOC-Energy Development Corp., the main developer of geothermal steam fields in the country, is also at the forefront in the push for the development of wind power. PNOC-EDC has already issued tender documents for bidding on the development of a 30-MW wind power plant, which may be held within the next two months, said Marasigan.
PNOC-EDC is currently pursuing three wind power projects, including development of the 30-MW plant. The projects could generate a total 140 MW.
"All in all, we (the government) are already in the tune of 300 MW of wind power capacity, mostly still under feasibility study," said Marasigan.
The Department of Energy is also trying to tap agriculture wastes, or biomass, for electricity generation.
Marasigan said two potential projects are taking shape: one is a power plant with a 30-MW capacity, while the other has a 20MW capacity. The facilities will use as primary feedstock bagasse, or the part of sugar cane that is left after its juice has been extracted.
"Aside from that, of course, we have ongoing collaboration with other agencies as well as international donor institutions in trying to develop our ocean and marine technology. But that’s still at a demonstration stage," he said.
The energy plan also covers the development of solar energy.
"I believe our solar wafer manufacturing facility here is still pursuing its goal of attaining a level of production of 150 MW in the next 10 years," Marasigan said.
Marasigan said hydroelectric power development is drawing interest, although the main drawback is cost.
"At the moment, we have already attained something like 3,300 MW (of hydroelectric capacity). We have interests or companies that have submitted their preliminary studies that account for an addition of 2,000 MW. Investors are waiting for the renewable energy bill, because that will ensure a better investment environment for them."
Marasigan said the renewable energy bill will set the tone on how a better business environment will be attained in the Philippines. Congress has identified the bill as a priority measure, and Marasigan believes it can be passed within the year.
Another priority measure being pushed by the Department of Energy is the biofuels bill, which will not only provide investment incentives but the quality standards as well.
The proposed bill mandates the use of preblended biofuel, which means all oil companies in the country will have to produce the product.
"They have to preblend all these biofuels, although the mix is relatively low at the start — for example, 1 percent for the biodiesel and 5 percent for the bioethanol. But if you look at the total picture, this will already replace something like a minimum of 40 million liters every year up to 70 million liters a year in terms of diesel," said Marasigan.
For bioethanol, the 5 percent mix would already replace something like 250 million to 260 million liters a year of gasoline, he said.
Marasigan added that if the biofuels bill is passed into law, the mandated use of biofuels can save the country an estimated 0 million a year in foreign exchange allocation.
posted by philpower @ 1:05 PM,
