December 6, 2017 By Greg B. Macabenta
It is said
that if hindsight is a perfect science, that makes scientists of our country’s
national leaders and bureaucrats. In administration after administration, the
would’ve-could’ve-should’ve syndrome has been a familiar affliction. Everyone —
particularly those in the legislature and in Malacañang — have been experts on
how a crisis would have, could have and should have been avoided if “someone”
had acted promptly and efficiently.
Sadly, these
buck-passers won’t admit that they could have and should have anticipated and
acted on the crisis — but didn’t.
Well. Another crisis is
looming. And this time it can be and should be avoided. It’s also an
opportunity for this government to show that it knows how to manage national
affairs, beyond liquidating drug suspects and conducting fruitless legislative
investigations.
CNN Philippines has
just run a five-part series on the threatening power crisis, entitled,
“Powering the Future.” This time, it is a prospective rather than a
retrospective situation confronting the government’s energy czars, as well as
the legislature and President Rodrigo Duterte. A situation they can and should
promptly act on.
Much has already been
said about past power problems that plagued the country, going back to the
administrations of presidents Corazon C. Aquino and Fidel V. Ramos. Our leaders
should already have learned the bitter lessons from the insufferable brownouts,
the corrosive effect on the national treasury, and the negative impact on the
country’s investment prospects and infrastructure programs — lessons that ought
to prompt them to act expeditiously and efficiently this time around.
The CNN reports are
persuasive:
1. The country’s
current dependable power reserve is very low at five to 10% compared to other
Asian countries, like Singapore with reserves at 50%.
2. During summer, power
outages become unavoidable as supply grapples with the seasonal spike in
electricity usage. Offices and households need more cooling appliances, and
establishments have to cope with increased tourism activities. These, on top of
regular household and business power consumption.
3. The Philippines’
power demand has been increasing at a rate of five to eight percent annually,
one positive reason being the country’s strong economic growth.
4. The country’s
ambitious 2017 to 2022 infrastructure plans and the growth of the
power-intensive manufacturing sector will further add pressure on supply.
5. What makes the
chronic power supply problem worse is the near depletion of the Malampaya
Natural Gas Facility which provides 30% of Luzon’s total capacity of 11,218
megawatts (MW). The facility’s gas reserves are expected to run out starting in
2024, posing a serious power supply shortfall.
6. Note that a power
deficit of 100 MW can result in a one-hour daily rotational brownout.
So, how can these
obvious problems be addressed and the looming crisis averted? Again, the CNN
report proposes solutions that any reasonably intelligent and diligent
bureaucrat would, could and should understand:
1. Build more power
plants as soon as possible. This would, could and should ensure the steady
supply of electricity needed to meet the growing energy demand.
2. Get rid of the
disincentives for private sector investments in power plants, mainly, the red
tape that unbelievably requires five years. COUNT THEM, FIVE YEARS to process
an application for a permit to build a power plant. A power plant investor also
needs to secure 162 clearances and 102 permits before any work can start on a
facility. COUNT THEM: 162 CLEARANCES AND 102 PERMITS.
Mercifully, Senator
Sherwin Gatchalian, who has had hands-on commercial and industrial management
involvement and expertise, has filed a bill to nip the bureaucratic red tape in
securing power plant permits. He proposes the Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop
(E-VOSS), a Web site for all power plants in the country, that will allow a
prospective investor to submit documents electronically, monitor the status and
pay fees online.
The bill will also
impose a 30-day deadline to approve a specific permit. The entire process will
be shortened to one-and-a-half years, at the most. That’s still a long time in
view of the looming crisis but infinitely faster than five years.
Another promising
development is the technology-neutral policy that has been adopted by the
Department of Energy. This policy promotes various energy sources such as
solar, geothermal, wind and hydro, and also includes coal and oil. The
objective is to make power supply cost-efficient and reliable.
This is good news for
current and potential coal power plant investors. Coal-fired power plants
generate a third of the country’s dependable power supply and coal happens to
be the most abundant, most reliable and least-cost fuel in the country.
Concerns have been
raised about coal, in view of the climate change crisis, but proponents say
that the problem can be minimized, with strict observance of the conditions in
the Environment Compliance Certificate (ECC), which covers pollution, waste
water and tree cutting. The emergence of the so-called clean coal technology
could also reduce carbon emissions.
Renewable and
environmentally ideal energy sources, like solar and wind, while expensive and
difficult to set up, offer the prospects of a more sustainable energy program
in the long run. These should not be overlooked.
Anticipating the
country’s power needs and promptly acting on them should be given high priority
by the government. While hindsight is a perfect science, foresight is better
proof of government efficiency and commitment to public service.
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