Business World Online
Posted on February 15, 2011 10:32:19 PM
THE ENERGY department will start canceling contracts for renewable energy projects which have not kept up with approved work programs, a Cabinet official said yesterday.
"We will be announcing the cancellation of renewable energy. It’s more than 10. We gave the companies until the end of the month to comply with all their requirements," Energy Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras told reporters.
The department began this review in December last year, he said.
He said the canceled contracts will be offered in another contracting round, while those companies behind the idle projects will be blacklisted from bidding again.
Mario C. Marasigan, the department’s director for renewable energy, said in a separate interview there are as many as 60 contracts, out of more than 200 that have been awarded, that were initially found noncompliant.
"We wrote letters to them requesting for updates. Some have already responded," Mr. Marasigan said.
"We’ve re-evaluated them and found that some of them just failed to fulfill reportorial requirements. They’re compliant but they just failed to submit [reports]."
Mr. Almendras said the move "is a step forward" for the industry. "The industry sees this as a step forward because the foreign chambers have always said they want us to review contracts," he recalled.
At the same time, the department said in a statement that it will start today in Bacolod City public hearings on draft rules for Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards (RPS).
The Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards is a policy which states that power industry participants like distribution utilities must source part of their electricity supply from renewable energy sources. "The purpose of the RPS is to contribute to the growth of the renewable energy industry by diversifying energy supply..." the department said in its statement.
Other consultations will be held in Laoag, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Clark Freeport and Metro Manila. -- Emilia Narni J. David
The department began this review in December last year, he said.
He said the canceled contracts will be offered in another contracting round, while those companies behind the idle projects will be blacklisted from bidding again.
Mario C. Marasigan, the department’s director for renewable energy, said in a separate interview there are as many as 60 contracts, out of more than 200 that have been awarded, that were initially found noncompliant.
"We wrote letters to them requesting for updates. Some have already responded," Mr. Marasigan said.
"We’ve re-evaluated them and found that some of them just failed to fulfill reportorial requirements. They’re compliant but they just failed to submit [reports]."
Mr. Almendras said the move "is a step forward" for the industry. "The industry sees this as a step forward because the foreign chambers have always said they want us to review contracts," he recalled.
At the same time, the department said in a statement that it will start today in Bacolod City public hearings on draft rules for Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards (RPS).
The Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards is a policy which states that power industry participants like distribution utilities must source part of their electricity supply from renewable energy sources. "The purpose of the RPS is to contribute to the growth of the renewable energy industry by diversifying energy supply..." the department said in its statement.
Other consultations will be held in Laoag, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Clark Freeport and Metro Manila. -- Emilia Narni J. David
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