Four new energy projects had been accorded “certificates of energy project of national significance” (CEPNS) by the Department of Energy (DOE) entailing that they are entitled to streamlined project permitting and approval processes.
These CEPNS energy ventures include the Galoc field area and development which is an investment in the upstream oil and gas sector; and the Mahanagdong geothermal brine optimization plant of the Energy Development Corporation.
The two others are the Therma Marine, Inc. (TMI) battery energy storage system (BESS) project of the Aboitiz group; and the Mount Malinao geothermal project of Philippine Geothermal Production Company (PGPC) of the Sy group.
The grant of CEPNS entitlements to energy projects is being anchored on Executive Order No. 30 that was issued by President Rodrigo Duterte in June 2017.
The evaluation processes for these projects are done through the Energy Investment Coordinating Council (EICC) which will also do the recommendation to Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi for his final approval.
Based on the energy department’s data, it already received 368 project-applications for CEPNS since the policy was enforced two years ago; and of the total, 297 had been duly accepted by the EICC.
