NCIP lauded for compliance with energy law

SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian lauded the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) for complying with the law in pursuing energy development projects.

The senator commended the NCIP’s compliance on Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop (EVOSS) law enacted in 2019.

He noted that by virtue of an en banc resolution, the NCIP will adopt an EVOSS-compliant time frame for Certificate of Non-Overlap (CNO) and Certification Precondition (CP).

Actions on applications with the NCIP should be released within 10 days in the case of a CNO and 105 days for the Free and Prior Informed Consent for the issuance of a CP.

A CNO is issued if the land involved in an energy project does not overlap an ancestral domain (AD) while CP is issued when the land involved is within AD and the concerned indigenous cultural communities (ICCs).

The EVOSS law, which established an online process of completing requirements of energy-related projects, ensured that the permitting processes for power generation, transmission, and distribution in the country will remain unimpeded and will eliminate red tape while the country remains in quarantine.

“The approval process of energy projects in areas affected by IP issues usually takes years,” Gatchalian said.

“But with their compliance with the streamlining processes of power generation, transmission and distribution projects mandated by EVOSS, investors can now be assured of a specific timeframe within which applications will be acted upon without compromising the rights of the IPs,” he said.

The senator said that the EVOSS law “will greatly help in the smooth processing of energy-related permits since all of this can be done online especially now in the time of pandemic.”

All government offices, including government-owned and controlled corporations involved in the processing of necessary permits are required to follow a strict time frame.