APC’s Kalinga geothermal project to get perks

A UNIT OF APC Group, Inc. has secured the government’s certification for its geothermal development in Kalinga province as a project of national significance, giving it perks including speedy regulatory permitting, the holding firm said on Monday.

“We hereby disclose that pursuant to Executive Order (EO) No. 30, the Energy Investment Coordinating Council (EICC) through the Department of Energy recently approved the application of Aragorn Power and Energy Corporation (APEC) for its Kalinga Geothermal Project to qualify as an Energy Project of National Significance,” it told the stock exchange.

During the pre-development phase, the certificate entitles APEC’s geothermal project to all the rights and privileges provided for under EO 30 series 2017, including action on the application within 30 working days.

EO 30 was signed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte in June 2017, while the Energy department issued the implementing rules and regulations in April 2018.

The project in Kalinga, Cordillera Administrative Region will enjoy presumption of prior approval, that is, it is presumed to have already complied with the requirements and permits from other government permitting agencies.

It will be deemed approved if no action is made five days after the lapse of the 30-working day period for processing of the application.

APC said the submission of monthly monitoring sheet is every 10th of the succeeding month to the EICC secretariat. It will list in detail the progress of the implementation of the project with respect to its permitting requirements.

The company said the certificate for the pre-development stage was issued in favor of APEC, its majority owned subsidiary.

On Monday, shares in APC jumped 32.61% to close higher by P0.15 at P0.61 each. —