INTERNATIONAL and Philippine companies have submitted applications for contracts to explore for petroleum and hydrogen in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and in Central Luzon, the Department of Energy (DoE) said.
“We are very pleased that well-known international players in hydrogen and petroleum exploration and production have shown interest and participated in this year’s bid round,” Energy Undersecretary Alessandro O. Sales said in a statement on Wednesday.
At the opening of application documents on Tuesday, the DoE and the BARMM’s Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources, and Energy announced the receipt of three applications for the 1st BARMM Conventional Energy Bid Round. The contract areas on offer are a pre-determined area (PDA) in the Cotabato Basin and two PDAs in the Sulu Sea Basin.
All applications were deemed qualified for further substantive evaluation following an initial completeness check.
Meanwhile, for the 2024 Philippine Bid Round, the DoE received five applications for service contracts for hydrogen exploration in Central Luzon.
These applications also passed the completeness check and are eligible for further evaluation.
An application for PDA in Cebu’s Alegria Field was disqualified due to incomplete documentation.
“The comprehensive legal, technical, and financial evaluation of all qualified applications will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2024. The highest-ranking applicants from this evaluation will be endorsed to the Office of the President,” the DoE said.
The next phase will determine whether these applicants will be awarded service contracts.
“This activity marks the beginning of a transformative journey that may span several years. If we do not embark on this activity now, it will never come to fruition,” Mr. Sales said. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
