Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi says the government will neither favor nor discourage any particular technology for power generation; that all power plants should compete with other types of technology without government support.
This, however, seems to run contrary to President Duterte’s statements in his fourth State of the Nation Address, where he sought “to fast-track renewable energy resources to reduce the country’s dependence on traditional energy sources such as coal.”
More than a few environmental groups have urged government agencies to follow the President’s marching orders and ditch the country’s reliance on coal energy, especially since cleaner and cheaper alternatives are now available.
Coal still dominates the Philippines’s energy mix. A BMI Research study said coal’s share is actually increasing over a 10-year forecast period—from just under 50 percent in 2017, to over 55 percent by 2027. This, despite our country’s commitment to cut 70 percent of its carbon emissions by 2030 under the United Nations Paris Agreement.
The Department of Energy should not ruin the momentum the government has gained in pursuing renewable-energy projects through corresponding policy adjustments.
The past few years saw the DOE commissioning pioneering renewable-energy projects that it endorsed to the Energy Regulatory Commission upon their validation for commercial operations, including hydropower, geothermal power, wind power, solar power, biomass power, even run-of-river hydroelectric power plants.
Big renewable-energy projects were being given the government’s go-signal for development, finally giving teeth to the National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) and the Renewable Energy Act of 2008.
Renewable-energy developers were seen boosting the country’s power supply with clean energy, enough to meet expected shortages.
Indeed, Cusi has a point. The government should make renewable-energy targets more realistic without raising overall costs to consumers. Subsidies or incentives should only be given to commercially viable projects. This would continue to bring down costs in the long run.
Solar, wind, geothermal and other renewable-energy projects can provide a competitive advantage over coal and other fossil fuels since they are readily available in our country and their costs will remain stable and under our control, unlike coal, diesel and other fossil fuels that the country imports and are subject to price volatility in the international market.
We have also seen how vulnerable the Philippines is to extreme weather events caused by climate change. In fact, our country tops the list of nations most in danger of facing more frequent and more intense storms as climate change worsens.
Renewable energy can significantly slow climate change and help save many lives.
Coal is a nonrenewable energy source and a type of fossil fuel that emits greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.
Burning coal may be cheap, but this can only lead to more greenhouse gas emissions and it is countries like the Philippines that would have to cope with the resulting negative climate change impact. The fact that there is a growing confidence among banks to lend money for renewable-energy investments only proves that they, too, believe in a green energy future.
More companies, both big and small, are going into renewable energy, showing that more electricity could be generated without the need for coal-fired power plants. They are showing that there are sustainable energy technologies that could be adopted and they are more likely to succeed since they maximize our country’s natural resources and create cost-cutting alternatives.
These renewable-energy investments also generate a significant number of jobs and boost economic activity in their host communities. They require the building and continuous maintenance of facilities that need local human resources. So with renewable energy, investments stay in the communities, creating jobs and helping local economies. When the government or local companies spend dollars to import coal and fossil fuels, there is no positive contribution to the economy.
The Philippines can become a global leader in renewable-energy sources and ditch its dependence on fossil fuels. It already has the right energy policies for doing so. All the government needs to do is stick to the program and implement it. Follow the President’s mandate.
Image credits: Jimbo Albano