by Mario Casayuran June 29, 2016
(updated)
Sen. Sergio R. Osmeña III, outgoing
chairman of the Senate Energy Committee in the 16th Congress, said yesterday
the appointment of Alfonso Cusi as Department of Energy (DOE) secretary is a
plus factor for the Duterte presidency in unraveling the country’s complex
power problem.
“He (Cusi) has no background in
energy but he has background in management. So I like that…a manager who is a
problem solver. I have always asked whichever administration basta maglagay na
mahusay na manager but don’t appoint political appointees…di nila kaya yon. Put
in a good manager and let him pay full attention to it,” Osmeña said.
Osmeña gave his observation on the
pesky power sector in an interview days before his six-year term as Senate
expires at noon today.
The interview focused on the complex
energy situation any administration has to face given the fact that the
Philippines could be considered a grade below the level of Singapore and Japan
that have the highest power rates in Asia. Two years ago, the average Filipino
electric consumer paid P10 per kilowatt hour (kwh).
“I would suggest the new President
and his secretary (Cusi) call for a summit among all the major players in the
geothermal field and power generating sub-sector and ask for their ideas. That
way they will understand what is required to development additional geothermal
fields and at the same time the public will be able to appreciate the problems
that stand in the way of additional geothermal production,” he said.
Osmeña said problems facing
investors in the geothermal field are:
- Investors want government to build
for them roads leading to possible geothermal sites as they would lose much
investments if they build the roads and the possible sites are not commercially
viable.
- Difficulty in obtaining local permits.
- Environmentalists whose
“kalikasan” writs usually obtained from the courts last for two to three years.
“What we need is installed capacity.
The Philippines right now has a peak demand nationwide of 13,000 megawatts
(MWs) and we have a dependable capacity of 15,000 MWs. Luzon’s peak demand is
9,700 MWs but we do not have reserves in the Visayas,” he added.
Comparing the Philippines with its
neighbors, Osmeña explained that power rates in Indonesia, Malaysia and
Thailand are comparatively lower vis-à-vis the Philippine rate all because
these Southeast Asian countries subsidize their power industries.
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