A measure seeking the regulation of the local natural gas industry--one of the priorities of the current administration--has moved forward in the House of Representatives.
On Thursday, Nov. 10, the House Committee on Energy chaired by Marinduque lone district Rep. Lord Allan Velasco tackled in a public hearing seven bills promoting the development of the Philippine downstream natural gas industry.
These were House Bill (HB) Nos. 17, 29, 173, 3015, 4097, 4267, and 4615.
Velasco, a House Speaker during the previous 18th Congress, noted that President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. appealed to Congress to prioritize the passage of such proposal during the latter's first State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July 25.
Before the end of the hearing, the chairman formed a technical working group (TWG) that would craft a measure creating a regulatory framework for the development of the natural gas industry using the seven individual bills.
“The passage of the bill will promote natural gas as a safe, environment-friendly, efficient, and cost-effective source of energy, create favorable conditions to establish a natural gas industry serving all segments of the nation’s population and the different sectors of the economy,” Velasco said.
He added that the proposal could pave the way for the Philippines to become a liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading and transshipment hub within the Asia-Pacific region.
Velasco noted that the energy panel during the previous Congress had already come up with a substitute bill for the proposal.
The Marinduque lawmaker said he refiled the substitute bill this 19th Congress--the same bill that was also filed by current Speaker Martin Romualdez.
According to SAGIP Party-list Rep. Caroline Tanchay, the importation of LNG currently depends solely on the initiatives of the private sector.
“The absence of an applicable law prevents the Philippines from fully accessing, tapping, and maximizing the LNG market globally as there is no existing or operational import facilities. Hence, the need to legislate and further develop the country’s downstream natural gas industry,” stressed Tanchay, one of the bills' authors.
Tanchay's co-nominee from SAGIP, Rep. Rodante Marcoleta, will head the TWG discussions on the matter. Marcoleta is a vice chairman of the energy committee.