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By Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo
Reporter
The Department of Energy (DOE)
signs today three contracts for the exploration and development of
geothermal energy resources across the country.
The companies are the Guidance
Management Corp., Biliran Geo-thermal Inc., and Basic Energy Corp.,
which have interests in the mining, agriculture, and energy sectors.
In a statement, the DOE said the
deal with the government will allow the companies to “explore and
develop” the geothermal contract areas in Amacan in the Compostela
Valley, Biliran and Mabini in Batangas, respectively.
The country currently has a
number of geothermal fields scattered in South Luzon, the Bicol
region, central Visayas and some Mindanao provinces, which power a
number of power plants owned by the government and Lopez-controlled
Energy Development Corp.
Geothermal energy, which accounts
for less than a third of the country’s power mix, is estimated to
power one out of every five light bulbs in the country today. It is
produced by tapping heat from beneath the earth and converting this
to electricity, and is relatively cleaner and cheaper than fossil
fuel-based energy sources and more stable than other alternative
fuel sources.
DOE Secretary Angelo Reyes had
said the government is eyeing to further boost the country’s
geothermal energy production as a long-term measure to minimize its
reliance on expensive oil imports.
He said the government aims to
become the number one geo-thermal producer in the world within the
next 10 years.
“With the help of other key
stakeholders, we also expect to make significant strides in
developing our hydro, wind, solar and biomass energy resources as
well,” Reyes said.
The Philippines currently is the
second largest geothermal energy producer in the world with an
output of over 1,900-megawatts close to the United States’ almost
2,000-megawatt production.
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