MANILA: Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos said on Monday (Jan 19) that a “significant” discovery of natural gas had been made near the country’s sole producing offshore site.
About 2.8 billion cubic metres of natural gas – enough to provide power to 5.7 million homes for a year – has been found east of the Malampaya Field near the island of Palawan, Marcos said.
The Philippines has some of the region’s highest energy costs and faces a looming crisis as the Malampaya gas field, which supplies about 40 per cent of power to the archipelago’s main island, Luzon, is expected to run dry within a few years.
The discovery – 5km east of the Malampaya Field – is the first in more than a decade and suggested the potential to produce even more, Marcos said.
“This helps Malampaya’s contribution and strengthens our domestic gas supply for many years to come. Initial testing showed that the well flowed at 60 million cubic feet (1.7 million cubic metres) per day,” Marcos said in a statement.
The Philippines – regularly affected by electricity outages – relies on imported carbon-belching coal for more than half of its power generation.
Kairos Dela Cruz, executive director of the Manila-based Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, told AFP that while the find was “relatively small”, it could point the way to finding other nearby gas resources.
“The discovery of these other gas fields will provide new indigenous supply and increase energy security,” he said.
“It also helps extend the operating life of the 500km undersea gas pipeline, long enough for larger gas fields in the area to be discovered.”
A former industry executive who spoke on condition of anonymity estimated the new find could extend the Malampaya Field’s life by two to three years.
Long-term, the country will still need to increase its focus on renewables ranging from solar to hydro to offshore wind projects, Dela Cruz said.
In 2022, then-president Rodrigo Duterte called a halt to oil and gas exploration in areas of the South China Sea disputed with China.
Beijing has ignored a 2016 international tribunal decision that declared its historical claim over most of the South China Sea to be without basis.
Source: CNA
