Phl, Singapore explore collaboration on LNG
The Philippines and Singapore are exploring deeper collaboration on the further development of the liquefied natural gas sector to become an LNG trading powerhouse in Asia.
Bilateral talks between Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi and Singapore’s Trade and Industry Minister S. Iswaran were held during the 35th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM).
“The Singapore government and Philippine government are looking for more ways to complement each other as far as LNG is concerned,” Energy Under- secretary Felix WIliam Fuentebella said yesterday.
During the meeting, the Singapore representative said they are quite advanced in LNG trading but noted they have certain limitations as far as land area is concerned.
Meanwhile, the Philippines is trying to come up with its LNG policy and infrastructure plans since the Malampaya gas field is expected to be depleted by 2024, Fuentebella said.
“There is a need to expand its facilities for LNG importation and for further exploration,” the energy official said.
At the opening of AMEM 35, Cusi said the country’s LNG hub in Batangas is expected to start construction within 2018 to take part in the region’s transition from net exporter of LNG to net importers.
A study by Oxford Institute for Energy indicated that by 2021, ASEAN countries will be net importers, requiring 20 million tons and is set to rise to at least 45 million tons in 2030.
The LNG facility is targeted to be online “by 2020 to safeguard against the anticipated depletion of the Malampaya gas facility in 2024,” Cusi said.
The Department of Energy has tasked the Philippine National Oil Corp. (PNOC), its corporate arm, to put up an integrated LNG hub with storage, liquefaction, regassification and distribution facility, as well as a reserve initial power plant capacity of 200 megawatts (MW).
Apart from LNG, the two nations have also discussed the development of renew- able energy projects, such as biomass and floating solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, and the use battery storage to complement these technologies.
“Secretary Cusi is very much interested in the waste-to-energy [facilities] being utilized by Singapore. Singapore also mentioned that floating solar PVs are very much in use and utilized by their government because of lack of land,” Fuentebella said.
The Philippines was invited to participate actively in the upcoming Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW), the country’s annual week-long energy event which gathers policymakers, industry CEOs and international players.
Fuentebella said he was assigned to arrange a visit, composed of the Philippine technical personnel team under Department of Energy-Renewable Energy Management Bureau (DOE-REMB) and PNOC Renewables Corp., to look into waste-to-energy and floating solar PV developments.