THE Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded coal-operating contracts consisting of seven areas to three mining firms.
During the 5th Philippine Energy Contracting Round (PECR 5), CoalBlack Mining Corp. was awarded a contract to explore Area 2, Philsaga Mining Corp. for areas 6 and 7 and Sahi Mining Corp. for areas 4, 5, 10 and 11.
Undersecretary Zenaida Y. Monsada underlined the significance of energy explorations in the power-generation sector.
“With the development and dynamism of our industries, we must veer toward the exploration of indigenous energy resources. We cannot always rely on others, we must strive and grow on our own,” Monsada said.
She also stated that the mission of the PECR is to provide stability and sustainability of the energy sector, which have been the core thrust of the agency since its foundation.
The DOE will continue to advocate indigenous energy explorations as we gear toward the growth and development of the energy industry and country. The PECR 5 has awarded a total of seven coal-operating contracts for this contracting round.
The PECR aims to showcase the exploration of potential coal and petroleum areas in the country.
The PECR 5 also offers 11 areas for petroleum exploration mostly located in Luzon. These include Area 1 in Southeast Luzon; 2 and 3 in Masbate-Iloilo; 4 and 5 in Northeast Palawan; 6 in Southeast Palawan; 7 in West Palawan; and 8 to 11 in West Luzon.
“For petroleum, the deadline was supposedly on March 31, 2015, but we’re looking at extending it by about two months. This is to give everybody a chance to come up with own data packs,” Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla said earlier.
To date, there are already six companies that secured bid documents for petroleum, Petilla added.
“They’re very upbeat about the Philippines not only because we have abundant resources but also because the fiscal policies here are advantageous.”
The deadline for the submission of petroleum contract applications is end-May of next year.
Petilla earlier said that ExxonMobil Corp. and the Turkish Petroleum International Co. expressed interest in exploring and possibly investing in the country’s rich-petroleum areas.