DoE: Interest ‘keen’ for energy projects

AROUND 50 local and international companies have expressed interest in bidding for energy development projects offered by the government on Monday, a senior official said.

“We are very pleased that known oil and gas exploration and production players in Asia, North America, and Europe, including local players, have come to this event and displayed a keen interest in evaluating our country’s petroleum potential,” Undersecretary Alessandro Sales said.

“I encourage you (the companies) to further evaluate these petroleum potentials. We have the best contractual terms to offer that could match and compete with other countries,” he added.

Companies present during the event included PXP Energy Corp., ExxonMobil, and Prime Energy.

Department of Energy and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) officials unveiled four predetermined areas (PDAs) for coal and petroleum exploration in the BARMM as well as two PDAs for petroleum in Northwest Palawan and Southern Cebu, and two for hydrogen in Zambales and the western portion of Central Luzon.

For the BARMM, the sole PDA for coal exploration is in Kapai and Tagoloan, Lanao del Sur, covering a total area of 14,856 hectares.

The region’s three petroleum PDAs, meanwhile, are comprised of an on-shore site in the Cotabato Valley covering 229,240 hectares and two in the Sulu Sea covering 780,000 and 532,083 hectares.

As for the 2024 Philippine Bid Round, the offshore Northern Palawan petroleum PDA covers 100,000 hectares and is near the northern coast of Busuanga Island, while that in Cebu covers 58,638 hectares.

The hydrogen PDAs in Central Luzon, meanwhile, cover an estimated 134,096 and 96,439 hectares.

The Energy department said it would select applicants that are able to demonstrate the possible resource potential of the identified areas.

Companies can submit petroleum service contract applications within a prescribed 180-day application period, while those for coal have a narrower 60-day application period.

Notices of qualification for BARMM coal contracts will be announced on July 24, 2024. Those for petroleum will be listed on Nov. 21, 2024.

Qualification notices for the other areas outside the region will be announced on Sept. 24, 2024.