Senate Committee on Energy Chairperson Sherwin Gatchalian clarified that the Davao City government is not working nor has partnered with Nippon Japan in establishing a P5 billion waste-to-energy project in the province.
In a previous Inquirer report, Gatchalian expressed that the city government “has, for quite a while, been working with Nippon Japan” on the project and that it is already up for groundbreaking.
However, according to recent news, the senator clarified that the city government was not working nor was it partnering with Nippon or any other Japanese company to establish and operate the facility. Gatchalian clarified that the partner will be selected via bidding process.
In related news, Gatchalian has filed Senate Bill no. 363 or the “Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Act” in a bid to address the country’s problem with garbage.
The bill aims to encourage the development of new technologies not only as a treatment for solid waste but also as a support to the expansion of bioenergy to attain sustainable energy. These technologies will allow the conversion of non-recyclable waste materials into usable heat, electricity, or fuel.
Citing data from the National Solid Waste Management Commission, Gatchalian revealed that trash generated in Metro Manila was expected to reach 4.44 metric tons in 2020 and 6.32 tons in 2030 from 3.6 tons generated in 2014.
“With the passage of the WTE bill, the country will be able to maximize the energy we can produce from waste, be it in the form of electricity, fuel, or gas, and, in the process, address the waste problem,” Gatchalian was quoted as saying in the Inquirer report.
