The Energy Department is waiting for the Foreign Affairs Department’s go signal for the lifting of the moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea.
Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said oil and gas areas affected by the West Philippine territorial dispute remained under exploration moratorium.
“It’s still suspended. We have not lifted that. We are looking at DFA’s lead to give the signal that we can already lift the suspension,” Cusi told reporters.
He said the department needed to coordinate with the Foreign Affairs Department because the issue involved the country’s sovereignty.
“The conflict is between countries and not between the exploration company and DOE. So this is an issue that we are leaving with the DFA,” Cusi said.
The group of businessman Manuel Pangilinan is waiting for the lifting of the moratorium on service contract 72 (Recto Bank) before it can proceed with any exploratory drilling in the area.
Pangilinan said his group revived talks with China National Offshore Oil Co. Ltd., an upstream oil and gas firm owned by the Chinese government, following the more friendly relations between Manila and Beijing.
“I think to the extent that the government has adapted a more friendly, more conciliatory push to China, I think the atmosphere has become better for a resumption of a discussion with China in general. And we’d like to move in that direction,” Pangilinan said earlier.
Pangilinan said they initiated talks with CNOOC on how best to move forward on service contract 72 but the tenor of discussions should be bound by Philippine laws.
The Philippines and China have an ongoing territorial dispute over the West Philippine Sea which covers SC 72.
Pangilinan chairs Philex Mining Corp. whose subsidiary PXP Energy Corp. (formerly Philex Petroleum Corp.) controls Forum Energy Plc which holds a 70-percent stake in SC 72.
“We as a Philippine entity cannot violate our law. Certainly not our sovereignty. We can’t do that so we have to stay within Philippine laws, within Philippine sovereignty,” Pangilinan said.
Pangilinan said Forum is a contractor of the government while the oil and gas resources belong to the government.
“After you’ve arrived at a business arrangement, it has to be within the context of Philippine laws and Chinese laws,” he said.
Pangilinan urged the Energy Department to review and lift the moratorium imposed on SC 72 since 2015 to enable Forum to conduct preparatory works for exploratory drilling in the area located west off Palawan.