The private sector has pledged investments that will assure the country of a steady supply of natural gas amid the expected depletion of the Malampaya gas resource by around 2027.
The Malampaya Energy Group led by businessman Dennis Uy, said it is ready to ramp up investment in both new exploration and production enhancement technologies to the country’s current sole natural gas source.
“We are now in a radically different operating environment that is challenging but also opens up opportunities for growth… As a single asset operation with Filipinos at the helm, Malampaya won’t have to compete for investment with other assets in a global portfolio.
We can and will embark on an ambitious growth program from day pne after handover to safeguard future energy supply for Filipino people,” said Belinda Racela, Malampaya Energy executive, in a statement.
Malampaya Energy is set to own 90 percent of the Malampaya resource with the remaining 10 percent held by PNOC-Exploration Corp.
Racela said the group aims to conduct the planned drilling campaign to add reserves and extend the life of the asset. The company is also evaluating well and production enhancement technologies to improve recovery from the main Malampaya field in the near term.
“There are a range of innovative new production enhancement tools and techniques that have emerged in recent years that have never been applied at Malampaya… We now have a window of opportunity to increase production while simultaneously exploring for new resources… There is potential to breathe new life into the Malampaya field if we act quickly and decisively,” Racela added.
Malampaya is the source of fuel for around 40 percent of Luzon’s power needs. Its service contract is set to expire in 2024 and the estimated 858,834 million standard cubic feet remaining fuel in the field is seen to be completely exhausted by the first quarter of 2027.
Meanwhile, Philippine-based integrator of liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure solutions, AG&P tapped British marine energy and infrastructure services company, Aceton, for its planned import and regasification terminal in Batangas.
Aceton will provide the local transportation and installation of jacket structures for the LNG berth.
Seven companies are developing LNG terminals in the country with proponents including AG&P with Osaka Gas; FGEN LNG with Tokyo Gas; Excelerate Energy with Topline Energy and Power Development Corp.; Batangas Clean Energy Inc. with LCT Energy and Resources Inc.; Energy World Gas Operations Philippines Inc.; Shell Energy Philippines Inc.; and Vires Energy Corp.
All proposed projects are located in Batangas except for Energy World which is developing a facility in Quezon Province.
