The Republic of the Philippines Department of Energy (DOE), through the Renewable Energy Management Bureau (REMB), has officially kicked off the start of the 3rd Open and Competitive Selection Process (OCSP3) to further accelerate the development of renewable energy in the country.
Under the OCSP3, a total of 22 pre-determined areas (PDAs) covering potential geothermal and hydropower resources have been identified and were presented during the launching to the various stakeholders. These 17 (mostly small) hydro projects and five geothermal projects have a total potential capacity of about 150 MW and will be offered to renewable energy developers deemed qualified based on criteria set by DOE. The PDAs have sufficient available technical data to serve as initial reference by those who are interested in acquiring the rights to develop the renewable energy resources, DOE said.
The 17 listed hydropower projects are (in alphabetical order):
- 3-MW Aklan River Lower East Tributary
- 2.4-MW Aklan River Middle West Tributary
- 2.4-MW Aklan River Upper West Tributary
- 3.2-MW Amlan (Plant A)
- 800-kW Amlan (Plant C)
- 52-MW Balintingon
- 200-kW Coyaoyao (Upper Cascade)
- 3-MW Dalanas
- 1.4-MW Dapnan
- 3-MW Hilabangan (Lower Cascade)
- 4.8-MW Hilabangan (Upper Cascade)
- 4.5-MW Maninila (Lower Cascade)
- 3.1-MW Maninila (Upper Cascade)
- 200-kW Palali
- 4-MW Sibalom (Middle Cascade)
- 2.1-MW Tibaio
- 300-kW Vera Falls
“We have obtained encouraging results from the series of online stakeholders’ consultation we undertook in July 2020 and that we are very optimistic in this OCSP 3,” Assistant Secretary Robert B. Uy said. He further expressed hope that OCSP3 will replicate the successful conduct of the OCSP2.
Meanwhile, Undersecretary Emmanuel P. Juaneza reiterated DOE’s commitment to encourage and promote the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s renewable energy resources. “Secretary Cusi himself reiterated the commitment to promote our renewable energy, with the hope that in time, renewables will figure prominently in the country’s energy future,” Juaneza said, adding that the recent declaration of a moratorium on endorsements for greenfield coal power projects is a manifestation of DOE’s vision for the country’s energy future.
The last day to submit bid documents will be Feb. 15, 2021. Target contract awarding for non-financial and technical assistance (FTAA) projects will be April 14, 2021, while those covered by the FTAA will be endorsed to the Office of the President for approval by April 19, 2021.
