THE country’s natural-gas output as of early May this year amounted to 35,888 million standard cubic feet (MMcf) with most of it used to fuel the country’s power generation.
In a posting on its web site, the Department of Energy (DOE) said 34,037 MMcf of the country’s gas production went to power-generation use, while the industrial sector took up 850 cubic feet.
Meanwhile, the transport industry recorded zero consumption.
The figures are from January 1- to-May 11 period this year.
The DOE said gas output in 2015 reached 122,541 MMcf, down from 130,351 MMcf in 2014.
Natural-gas output peaked in 2011 at 140,368 MMcf. Total consumption stood at 137,066 MMcf. Of which, the power generation’s share in the output for that year stood 133,732 MMcf; industrial at 3,288 MMcf; and transport at 47 MMcf.
From 1994 up to May 11, 2016, the same data showed that output reached 1,698,923 billion cubic feet (Bcf), while consumption stood at 1,607,304 Bcf.
During the said period, natural gas consumption for power generation totaled 1,607,304 Bcf; 29,742 MMcf for industrial sector; and 184 MMcf for the transport sector.
Energy officials said that the country’s natural gas is being consumed domestically. It relies on the Malampaya deep-water gas field to fuel 30 percent of the country ‘s power requirements.
The Malampaya natural-gas facility supplies gas to three power plants with a total capacity of 2,700 megawatts (MW), providing about half of Luzon’s power needs.
These power plants are the 1,000-MW Santa Rita, 500-MW San Lorenzo and 1,200-MW Ilijan.
However, natural gas from the Malampaya gas field is expected to last by 2029 to 2030, more than five years than its earlier projected depletion date of 2024.
The Malampaya gas field has proven reserves of 2.7 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) to 3.2 Tcf, of which, more than 1 Tcf has already been consumed.