In an effort to expand the country’s renewable energy portfolio and enhance long-term energy security, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have formalized a three-year technical cooperation project aimed at mapping the Philippines’ large-scale hydropower potential.

Signed on June 9, 2025, the agreement, which is titled the “Project on Resource Inventory of Hydropower Potential Sites”, seeks to identify and assess viable sites for hydropower development nationwide. The project is set to begin sometime in September 2025, and will focus specifically on locations suitable for impounding and pumped-storage hydropower plants with capacities exceeding 100 megawatts (MW).

The partnership builds on a decade-long collaboration between the Philippines and Japan in the energy sector. It also follows the groundwork laid by a 2012 JICA-supported study that concentrated on small- to medium-scale hydropower projects below 100 MW. The earlier study helped establish the DOE’s existing hydropower database and supported past rounds of the Open and Competitive Selection Process (OCSP) for energy investments.

The new project will be rolled out in three phases. The first of which starts with the collection of key technical data such as topographic maps, rainfall patterns, and river flow information. It also includes field surveys of four priority sites, which will serve as pilot areas for pre-feasibility studies and possible future investments.

According to the DOE, this national inventory will support the country’s clean energy transition by identifying strategic locations for hydropower development, enhancing flexibility in the power system, and attracting private sector participation through the OCSP mechanism.

This initiative is also the first technical cooperation project approved by JICA following its 2024 Data Collection Survey on climate change measures and green transformation. The DOE served as one of JICA’s key cooperating agencies in that study, helping identify priority areas for sustainable energy development.

Present at the signing ceremony were Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla, JICA Chief Representative Baba Takashi, and Japan’s Minister for Economic Affairs Yokota Naobumi.

The DOE emphasized that, particularly, pumped storage hydropower can play a vital role in ensuring a clean, flexible, and resilient energy system. This makes this partnership with JICA a significant step forward for the country’s energy future.

Follow Power Philippines on Facebook and LinkedIn or join our Viber community for more updates.