The Asian Development Bank (ADB) reported that the de-risking strategy for geothermal technologies in the Philippines is attracting investor interest.

In a briefing, Pavit Ramachandran, ADB Country Director for the Philippines, noted that despite potential challenges, stakeholders are already considering studies related to the de-risking initiative. 

"Even now that the Philippines announced that it is working on the de-risking strategy… We can see increased interest already in investors who are looking into exploration, and that’s very positive," he told reporters.

The geothermal de-risking facility, a partnership between the ADB and the Land Bank of the Philippines, aims to mitigate financial risks associated with early-stage geothermal exploration and encourage private sector participation in renewable energy development.

Ramachandran elaborated on the rationale, stating, "There’s a lot of ambition policy-wise [to] double the geothermal capacity. One of the real challenges is around the exploration cost, and the risk associated with that… You are seeing stranded assets because of that, so how do you incentivize investments to come in?" 

He added, "I think there will be a need for baseload capacity to supplement some of the potential solar and offshore wind farms that will [likely come out]."

Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Rowena Guevara, in a keynote speech at the Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF 2025), announced that the facility is in its final stages of approval. 

"Geothermal energy, despite its vast potential, remains underdeveloped due to high exploration risks. No new field has been developed since the privatization of the government’s geothermal exploration arm," she explained.

In a subsequent interview, Guevara clarified that the government has not yet disclosed a timeline for the facility due to a "lengthy process, more signatures, board meetings with Landbank [and] ADB." 

She stressed the urgency, saying, "We already promised this to the industry, and we really need this. If we won’t de-risk and we don’t see more geothermal [projects], it would be such a waste [because] it’s a baseload [power supply]."

The facility loan is valued at approximately $250 million (around ₱13.9 billion), with the first tranche set at $100 million (₱5 billion).

FGen’s geothermal focus

From the perspective of generation companies, Energy Development Corp. (EDC) shared its ongoing efforts to enhance the country’s geothermal capacity. "For now, we have this massive big campaign, and we want to increase in geothermal capacity," said Jerome Cainglet, EDC’s President and Chief Operating Officer.

Cainglet reported significant progress in well-drilling activities, telling reporters, "we only have 11 wells remaining out of those 40, with six scheduled for this year and five for next year." He projected an increase in capacity: "Based on our budget, we estimate around [an] additional 85 megawatts (MW)… For those new wells. But we think while some wells fail, some wells did better than expected, so we think we’re gonna exceed that."

The EDC chief also stated that the total estimated investment for these 40 wells is approximately ₱30 billion. Additionally, the company is exploring greenfield geothermal projects, with an immediate focus on exploratory wells in the Amacan geothermal project in Mindanao.