PH wants to talk to other ASEAN countries on joint oil exploration

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said he is open to joint oil and gas exploration with other Southeast Asian countries to help the Philippines achieve energy security.

“What the President [Rodrigo Duterte] is saying is let’s get the resources available for our energy security. We can fight, talk, argue, debate boundaries but what is more important is we get our resources,” Cusi said at the sidelines of the Association of Electricity Supply Industry of East Asia and the Western Pacific CEO Conference 2019.

“In the ASEAN, we have overlapping borders like the Philippines and Vietnam, so we said why don’t we talk with each other and discuss the problem which is resource development,” Cusi said.

Cusi, in a speech during the AESIEAP CEO Conference, stressed the significance of resource development.

“Given our shared borders within the ASEAN, it is imperative that we jointly explore our available resources both for our peoples’ benefit and to help augment regional energy security,” the energy chief said.

Cusi vouched the proposal during the 37th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting in Thailand in early September.

“Given our shared borders, it is imperative that the ASEAN members jointly explore and harness available resources to ensure the region’s energy security and to benefit our people,”  Cusi said. 

Cusi also proposed the inclusion of oil exploration and development as the 8th Sub-Sector Network in the updated ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation and the ASEAN Council on Petroleum.

The proposal was welcomed and strongly supported by the Indonesian vice energy minister.

“While our backgrounds and nationalities may differ on the surface, we share the goal of invigorating the intra-ASEAN energy relations. A united ASEAN in the energy sector is a crucial component in shaping ASEAN’s future,” Cusi said.

The Philippines and China are also drafting a framework for possible joint exploration in the West Philippine Sea.