Hontiveros: Amend EPIRA Law
Senator Risa Hontiveros on Sunday said now is the time to amend the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, citing the need to find a new source of renewable energy in the country.
“Maybe it is time to re-think the EPIRA and the way the energy industry is organized,” Hontiveros said when asked about what could be a possible solution to the looming energy crisis due to the impending depletion of gas supply at Malampaya.
Located off Palawan Island, the Malampaya natural gas field project currently supplies g about 30 percent of Luzon’s energy consumption.
However, experts believe that the remaining reserves in the Malapaya gas field will be depleted by 2027.
Hontiveros said the development and optimal use of the country’s renewable energy resources are central to the Philippines’ sustainable energy agenda.
“Renewable energy is an essential part of the country’s low emissions development strategy and is vital to addressing the challenges of climate change, energy security, and access to energy,” she said.
‘Phl-China Joint Oil and Gas Explorations’
Meanwhile, Hontiveros said a Supreme Court decision to void a 2005 agreement by the Philippines, China, and Vietnam “should be respected.”
“Of course, the decision is not yet final, but whatever the final outcome of the case is, the Court’s opinion on the matter should be respected,” she said.
The High Court nullified the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking in 2005 that allowed the Philippines, China, and Vietnam to conduct explorations for oil resources in the South China Sea. It was signed by then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
She added that while it “moves the timetable back” for possible answers for the looming energy crisis, she said the Constitution must be upheld.
Last week, the Supreme Court en banc declared the 2005 Tripartite JSMU unconstitutional “for allowing wholly-owned foreign corporations to participate in the exploration of the country’s natural resources without observing the safeguards provided in Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution.”
“At the very least, this forces the government to proceed prudently by, among others, choosing its partners carefully,” she added.