The Department of Energy said Monday it will protect the Filipino families’ purchasing power and mitigate socioeconomic scarring by ensuring energy security, reducing transport and logistics costs and bringing down energy prices in 2023.
The department disclosed its priorities for 2023 including pursuing contingency measures and activities to ensure energy supply during critical periods such as the next dry months.
It said that as the oversight agency for the sector, it would ensure that committed power projects, transmission line facilities and liquefied natural gas infrastructure would be completed and delivered on time.
Among the critical transmission projects are the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project, the Cebu-Negros-Panay Backbone Project and the Hermosa-San Jose Transmission Line in Bataan that will support the entry of around 711.54 megawatts of additional renewable energy capacity and 1,120-MW battery energy storage systems in the Luzon grid.
It also vowed to keep a tight watch on the commercial operation of LNG facilities towards the first half of 2023.The DOE approved six applications for LNG import terminal projects as of December 2022.
It said Linseed Field Corp. and the FGEN LNG Corp. were expected to be operational by March and June 2023, respectively.
The DOE said its key priorities in 2023 would be in line with the Marcos administration’s development strategy. It will update the Philippine Energy Plan to be aligned with the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028.
The National Economic and Development Authority formulated the PDP 2023-2028, where energy forms part of Chapter 12 (Expand and Upgrade Infrastructure) together with connectivity and water resources.
The DOE said it would also promote the development and utilization of RE resources by conducting the second round of the Green Energy Auction Program.
“Further, the department will continuously develop essential policy frameworks for emerging RE technologies such as offshore wind and hydrogen,” it said.
“Hybrid power systems will also be implemented in off-grid areas to reduce the universal charge for missionary electrification,” it said.
The DOE said it would strengthen the implementation and enhancement of the competitive selection process or bidding policy for distribution utilities and electric cooperatives.
“In a bid to address the delays and improve the slow pace of DUs’ compliance on competitive power supply contracting, the DOE shall reassess previous policy issuances and the promulgation of a more refined CSP policy,” it said.
The DOE said the necessary power supply contracting mechanisms would be put in place to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the policy.
It will also pursue the National Total Electrification Roadmap—a comprehensive national strategic plan to accelerate the country’s total electrification.