State-owned Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) is proposing a P2.2 billion spending program in 2024 in pursuit of key projects highlighted by an offshore wind project in Batangas.
According to Oliver Butalid, PNOC president and chief operating officer, the state-owned firm’s board of directors have agreed to redevelop a 19-hectare property in Mabini, Batangas into an integrated facility hosting OSW-generated plants serving the power and transport requirements not only of the province but adjacent areas such as Mindoro.
The envisioned integrated services available at its Batangas facility is one of five long-haul projects the PNOC is undertaking in the field of offshore wind generation, electric vehicles (EV) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing.
Butalid told a legislative committee on Wednesday of the PNOC vision as a niche player with focus on activities that impact on the long-term energy requirements of the economy.
He told legislators the 19-hectare Batangas integrated services project will take two years to develop and should be ready for launching by 2026.
Butalid also looks to promote the Bataan Industrial Park as a terminal for LNG locators under lease agreements.
He said the PNOC supports the National Power Corporation’s thrust to reduce the cost of power generation in off-grid areas via the hybridization of areas generally served by diesel-fired power plants and intensified use of government-owned building rooftops by private entities generating solar power for commercial purposes.
The whole idea, Butalid told legislators, is to “take the first mover role” not just by generating power from rooftops and making government buildings more energy efficient but establishing EV charging stations particularly on highways leading to tourist destinations.
Butalid noted that four-wheel EVs number less than 1,000 at the moment but is convinced this is a classic chicken-and-egg conundrum waiting for entities like the PNOC, as first mover, to start the ball rolling.
He said the proposed PNOC 2024 spending plan is internally funded and already includes the P1.1 billion budget to redevelop its port facilities in Batangas.
