The Department of Energy (DOE) has asked budget planners to set aside P2 billion starting in 2026 for the Government Energy Management Program (GEMP) implementing various energy efficiency and conservation (EEC) projects.
“We already have the strategies in place so what we’re working on is the financing. We’re trying to come up with a facility in collaboration with our development partners. We are looking at spending P2 billion a year for five years, starting 2026,” said DOE undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella at the sidelines of a forum hosted by the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines in Makati City on Wednesday.
Fuentebella said the development partners the DOE has sought include the Asian Development Bank.
The DOE also said the funds will likely be a combination of concessional official development assistance (ODA) with a blend of other fund sources.
In July, the DOE conducted a GEMP Summit involving representatives from the public sector to address the challenges and seize opportunities in pursuit of energy efficiency.
The DOE said the activity also highlights best practices in energy efficiency applicable to the government, as well as on processes for formulating EEC plans for local government units and other entities and the future of regional cooperation in EEC initiatives across the Philippines.
The GEMP aims to cur government-wide electricity and fuel consumption by at least 10 percent through strategic energy efficiency and conservation measures.
The DOE said that in the first quarter of 2024 alone, the government saved 31 gigawatt hours equivalent to P365 million in cost savings and over half a billion liters of fuel conserved, resulting in savings of P35 million.
The agency said deploying strategies enhancing energy efficiency in government buildings and facilities is seen leading to substantial government savings and creating new jobs while reducing carbon emissions.
