The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) streamlining permitting procedures for offshore wind (OSW) projects.
Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla said during a business-to-business matching event hosted by the DOE in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development in Taguig City yesterday the MOA is especially useful for pioneering power technologies like OSW.
“…Because each of this service contract, the developers would need at least two years of wind data so that’s part of the pre-development stage and that’s what DENR is trying to facilitate by clearly indicating what would be needed in the pre-development stage,” Lotilla said.
Lotilla added properly facilitating the pre-development stage of OSW projects is key as the actual “development stage will have a greater impact on the marine environment and they will also be requiring more in the development stage the requirements for that are not in place yet.”
During the same venue, DENR undersecretary Analiza Rebualta-Teh, said that apart from an interim guideline for the pre-development stage OSW projects, an enhanced guideline will also be issued that will focus on the development stage to provide more guidance to developers to facilitate their applications under the environmental impact assessment system.
Apart from OSW project, Teh said the DENR is also set to issue guidelines for energy projects such as floating solar facilities that will utilize fresh water bodies outside the Laguna Lake.
Meanwhile, DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga, said that issuance of new policies are needed as the exploration and development of wind resources “may have significant unintended impact on the environment” given that the installation, operation and decommissioning of such facilities can potentially cause some disruptions and threat to marine, terrestrial and socio-economic environments.
“With this MOA, we hope, that our continued partnership with the DOE will provide guidance to the developers and assist them and ensure that their predevelopment exploration activities and the eventual operation are within our environmental laws, rules and regulations and within the best international practice,” Loyzaga said in the same event.
The Philippines’ total technical potential for offshore wind is estimated at 178 gigawatts (GW).
To date, the DOE has awarded a total of 82 offshore wind projects, with a potential capacity of 63.359 GW. These projects are located north of Luzon, west of Metro Manila, north and south of Mindoro, Panay and Guimaras Strait.
However, all these wind energy service contracts (WESCs) are currently in the pre-development stage, where assessments on resources, site suitability and project viability are being undertaken.
Out of the 82 awarded offshore wind WESCs, 12 of them stand out as they were awarded to five 100 percent foreign-owned companies following the lifting of foreign ownership restrictions for all renewable energy project developments in November 2022.
