By
Jovee Marie de la Cruz - August 17, 2017
The Department of
Energy (DOE) on Thursday said it would ask President Duterte to endorse to
Congress the passage of a measure allowing the use of Malampaya funds to
finance several interconnections projects.
During the 2018 budget
deliberations of the DOE, Energy Undersecretary and Spokesman Felix William B.
Fuentebella said congressional approval is needed to expand the use of
Malampaya funds for the construction of interconnectivity and rural
electrification projects.
“We will seek clearance
from the President to endorse for congressional approval for use of Malampaya
Fund. This will be [a] subject of legislation,” he said.
Currently, Fuentebella
noted the total collection from Malampaya gas facility is at P241.37 billion.
Of this fund, P47.74 billion have been disbursed.
In November 2013 the
Supreme Court ruled that the fund should be reserved for financing “energy
resource development and exploitation” activities.
If approved by
Congress, the energy official said the fund could be used to bankroll the following
projects: the Visayas-Mindanao Interconnection Project, Bohol-Cebu
Interconnection Project and the Antique-Mindoro Interconnection Project.
The National Grid Corp.
of the Philippines said the Visayas-Mindanao Interconnection Project
seeks to connect power from Cebu to Dipolog.
Meanwhile, the
five-year Regional Development Plan outlined the completion of the Bohol-Cebu
Interconnection Project by 2020.
The Antique-Mindoro
Interconnection Project is included in the three-phase project plan to interconnect
Mindoro and other islands to a proposed mine-mouth power plant in Antique,
which has an initial aggregate capacity of 50 megawatts.
Also, Fuentebella said
the gas fund could back rural electrification projects of the agency, which is
currently at 90.5 percent.
Missing fund
Meanwhile, Rep.
Josephine Ramirez-Sato of the Lone District of Occidental Mindoro has urged the
Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) to account for the alleged P25 billion “missing”
Malampaya Fund uncovered by the Commission on Audit (COA).
“The BTr should explain
the discrepancy in the current balance of the Malampaya Fund. What happened to
this P25 billon?” Ramirez-Sato asked.
According to
Ramirez-Sato, the P21 billion in cash releases and P4 billion in remittances as
of December 2016 should be looked into, noting that no less than the COA itself
had cast doubt on the reliability of the balance of the Malampaya Fund.
According to
Ramirez-Sato, the P25 billion, if properly used, will go a long way in
jump-starting renewable-energy (RE) projects that would boost power supply and
energize off-the-grid island provinces like those that lie within the Mimaropa
region.
Ramirez-Sato, a vice
chairman of the House Committee on Economic Affairs and a member of the House
Committee on Energy, said the Malampaya funds should be used to “energize”
remote islands with no access to, or short in supply of, power and electricity.
She added it is high
time that a portion of the fund goes to projects that promote RE, particularly
in remote islands that are “off the grid” or not yet connected to the main
power grid, to promote inclusive growth.
“People in island
provinces, towns or even barangays suffer from fluctuating electricity because
of power shortage. We need to energize our remote islands to lure investors and
spur economic activities,” she said.
For his part,
Party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate of Bayan Muna questioned the DOE for the
unrecorded P21 billion in cash releases through special allotment release orders.
“Where did the funds go
and who authorized these disbursements?” asked the progressive solon.
“The Supreme Court has
already ruled that the Malampaya funds should only be used for energy
exploitation and development, but what happened to the P21 billion Malampaya
funds and why is it only now that this has surfaced?” he said.
During the budget
hearing, Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi said the agency is not accountable
for the missing Malampaya Fund since the DOE immediately remits the collected
funds to the BTr.
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