The Senate Committee on Energy Technical Working Group said that developing the country’s natural gas industry is critical to driving investments that will enhance national energy security, reduce electricity costs and create more jobs for Filipinos.
The urgency of the bill’s passage arises from the critical need to extend the life of Malampaya gas, which provides about 40 percent of the country’s natural energy needs since 2001. “I think ‘yun ‘yung best driver ng investment natin dahil instead na mag-invest sila sa importation, mag-invest sila sa facilities, sa mga infrastructure. So may trabaho plus may foreign investment,” he added.
“When you fire up a coal power plant, hindi ‘yan parang light switch no, it takes a while to ramp up, to heat up, to generate energy. It also takes a while to adjust that energy, so pag nag-iba ‘yung energy demand, minsan naiiwan ‘yung production ng coal, nagkaka-brown out tayo.