The PTT Philippines Corp. (PTTPC) expressed its interest in establishing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) depot and port project in the country, expected to cost around $2 billion.

PTTPC president and chief executive officer Sukanya  Seriyothin ensured that the project will be profitable and disclosed that the company has begun talks with Department of Energy (DOE) officials and provincial governors for the best possible site of the terminal.

“We consider the price, and local government unit heads said they need to talk to President Duterte about this project,” Seriyothin said.

Seriyothin added that having an LNG storage alone will not last. A connectivity business must be added as well.

“It won’t be just a terminal, but a power plant,” Seriyothin said.

In earlier reports, PTTPC’s mother firm in Thailand, PTT Public Company revealed its talks with Filinvest Development Corp. and other firms for a possible partnership for the LNG venture.

“We’re just saying that we can invest. We’re at the initial case study. The Philippines still lacks energy supply, that’s why we know the Philippines’ needs for power generation,” PTT vice president for international marketing Wisarn Chawalitanon said in past interviews.

Chawalitanon said that the progress of the project will depend on the country’s power set-up and the government.

“In the Philippines, you have to go through bidding. That means you just give the price of the power that you are going to sell, and (government) will select the cheaper one. How can LNG business give a competitive price since the cost is really high?” he said.

PTTPC also expects an increase in their monthly import volume by 200 percent in the next five years when the planned additional 300 stations in the country is completed.

The company has allocated P3 billion in capital expenditure for the project. Part of the amount will be used to put up infrastructure, including oil depots and terminals in Visayas and Mindanao.

The PTTC currently has 96 service stations in the country and a market share of 1.8 percent. The company is currently operating two fuel depots in Luzon and a fuel terminal in Cebu.

Last year, PTTPC sold a total of 857 million liters of petroleum products.