The glue on the partnership of the Department of Energy (DOE) and Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has been solidified for the advancement of research and development (R&D) for suite of technological innovations, automation of data management processes as well as georisk mapping for the targeted siting of renewable energy (RE) projects.

The collaboration of the two agencies in improving the investment climate for RE projects is bonded by a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to be propped by the use of the Renewable Energy Trust Fund (RETF) – as anchored on the prescription of Section 28 of the Renewable Energy Act.

According to Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla, the two agencies will “plan for specific activities” that they will jointly work on – and the target is to demarcate to-do list for each RE technology, but without duplication of the initiatives already being done by the private sector.

“By tapping into DOST's expertise in research and development, we aim to leverage our collective strengths and resources to drive innovation and hope to overcome technical, economic, and policy challenges to facilitate the widespread adoption of RE technologies,” the energy chief said.

He qualified that at this point, the RE trust fund funneled into the collaborative work being pursued with DOST is “just a very modest amount, the total budget of DOST for their energy sector projects is much bigger than this trust fund,” hence, the strategy is to complement each other for the financial resources needed for the targeted projects.

In time though, the DOE is eyeing prospective reinforcement from additional funds that will be injected by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) as well as the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

Lotilla emphasized that with the aid of DOST’s Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD), research projects will have to be carried out on “enhancing the efficiency, affordability and scalability of RE technologies, including solar, wind, hydro, biomass, ocean, geothermal energy and other emerging technologies.”

He further noted that the agreement “facilitates the application of research findings and innovations, promoting the commercialization of RE technologies and the growth of the local green economy.”

Automation of RE project sites

Among the first items already discussed for joint undertaking, according to Energy Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara, would be the automation of data for the project-sites of RE facilities.

“We want it easier for renewable energy investors to find where to invest - and we are looking at automating the determination of areas of interest for renewable energy developers,” she stressed.

The energy official explained “if the RE developers will come to us and they are interested in this area, we will have to determine if there is already a service contract awarded for that area and if it’s possible to do multi-use. So right now, that’s not fully automated and it takes time for us to reply to such expression of interest.”

Guevara reiterated “we are hoping that this will be one of the first projects that will be done – to automate that portion so it will be easier for our developers.”

She stated that with the targeted automation, the DOE response time could be substantially cut because this will enable response time on the same day of investor-inquiry instead of the typical seven days.

Georisk mapping

DOST Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. similarly indicated that georisk mapping may be carried out for the targeted RE project-sites, so the investors can already have handy access to data on which areas are prone to seismic, volcanic or even hydrometeorologic hazards.

He expounded that the plan of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) on broadening weather forecasting at least 14 days in advance - with the application of artificial intelligence (AI) - may likewise help energy players temper the scale of risk or damage that may be caused by extreme weather events, such as typhoons or flooding – and that will form part of the business continuity risk management strategy that could be enforced for the power facilities.

Beyond these initiatives, he conveyed that the two agencies will further leverage their collective expertise toward experimentation, iteration as well as pursue continuous improvement to accelerate the pace of innovation in the RE space as well as on other technologies so the country could successfully gain traction on the energy transition lane.

In the quest for technological innovation, he specified that the DOST can do “pilot testing of available technologies that might be coming from outside or someone from the Philippines.”

Solidum narrated that one of the latest joint undertaking of the two agencies had been the inauguration of fuel cell research and testing facility at the DOST campus in Bicutan.