DoE clears sale of Chevron’s Malampaya stake

THE Department of Energy (DoE) has approved the transfer of Chevron’s Malampaya LLC’s stake in the Malampaya gas-to-power project to a unit of Udenna Corp., the Dennis A. Uy-led firm said on Wednesday.

“Udenna Corp. expressed its appreciation of the DoE’s approval of the transfer of rights and obligations of Chevron Malampaya LLC (now UC38 LLC) to UC Malampaya Pte. Ltd. under Service Contract No. 38,” the firm said in a statement.

The approval comes around a year after Udenna said that its unit completed the acquisition of Chevron Malampaya’s 45% stake in the deepwater project.

In a hearing in November, DoE Assistant Secretary Leonido J. Pulido disclosed that Udenna bought Chevron Corp.’s stake for $565 million.

Mr. Uy, Udenna’s chairman and chief executive officer, said his company is committed to support the Philippines’ agenda of achieving energy security, self-reliance and transitioning to cleaner energy sources. He said the DoE approval of the transfer of rights “is a welcome progress to reach this end.”

“We are committed to the safe, reliable and sustainable development of the gas-to-power industry in the Philippines through Malampaya,” Mr. Uy added.

He said UC38 continues to be led by a highly qualified team who were previously with Chevron. He said the team is set to provide Udenna with “upstream technical, operational, and commercial expertise based on global industry best practices.”

As a partner in the Malampaya consortium, UC34 works closely with operator Shell Philippines Exploration B.V., which holds a 45% stake, and state-led Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp., which owns 10%.

The Malampaya field, located off the northwest coast of Palawan, fuels five power plants in Luzon with a combined capacity of 3,200 megawatts.

The DoE previously said that the Malampaya’s reserves are expected to be completely depleted by 2027.