Win: Exploration for new natural gas sources must begin

Senate energy committee chairman Sherwin Gatchalian urged the government and energy players to begin exploration for new sources of natural gas with lesser production coming from the Malampaya gas field.

“Maghanap pa tayo ng potensyal dito sa West Philippine Sea at [around] the Malampaya area dahil atin ‘yan,” Gatchalian said in an interview on Radyo5 Tuesday morning.

Aside from exploring indigenous sources of natural gas, Gatchalian said the country and consider importation, saying that fuel prices have dropped worldwide.

FirstGen is currently building an import facility for liquefied natural gas in Batangas City. Gatchalian said he hopes this would be completed before 2024, when Malampaya’s resources are expected to be depleted.

Gatchalian had warned of rotating brownouts should there be no replacement for Malampaya, which provides for a fifth of the country’s electricity supply. 

“Meron pang makukuha, pero ‘di na kasindami ng nung unang panahon,” Gatchalian describes Malampaya’s situation.

Businessmen Manny Pangilinan and Dennis Uy have recently expressed their intentions to conduct exploration activities in the Recto Bank, which like Malampaya is in the West Philippine Sea.