Japense JV in Philippines looking into geothermal investments in Philippines

Reported in the Philippines, TeaM Energy Corporation is looking into investments into geothermal in the country. TeaM Energy is 50-50 joint venture between Marubeni Corporation and Tokyo Electric Power Company and working as an Independent Power Producer with total of 2127MW from 3 power plants, Sual, Pagbilao and Ilijan.

In the Philippines there are current efforts to introduce renewable portfolio standards, which would require utilities to source a certain percentage of their electricity from renewable resources. Geothermal is considered quite favourably, because it is a base-load capacity.

“The rules on renewable portfolio standards (RPS) are not crystal clear, but TeaM Energy Corporation is advancing investment sights into geothermal and other renewable energy development ventures to meet the terms of the prospective mandate.

“For other projects, we’re looking at maybe geothermal and some renewables because we’re reviewing the impact of the RE (Renewable Energy) Bill,” TeaM Energy president Federico E. Puno said.

Many players in the industry though, like TeaM Energy, are still baffled as to the prescription on RPS since the law enunciated that it will cover all distribution utilities, electricity suppliers and generators.

The implementing rules and regulations of the RE Law left the task of drawing up the RPS impositions to the National Renewable Energy Board.

Puno said their plunge into renewable energy investments shall be underpinned by what shall be imposed eventually as the level of RPS, or the mandated supply that shall be sourced from renewables.