Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the exploration and development of resources in the West Philippine Sea will not compromise the country’s sovereignty.
Cusi said the Energy and Foreign Affairs Departments are working together so that exploration activities in the West Philippine Sea could finally proceed.
“While we are protecting our territories, the DOE is trying to work together with the DFA on how we can continue exploration in the area,” Cusi said in a meeting with members of the Regional Peace and Order Council of Region IV-B.
ROPC is chaired by Palawan Governor Jose Alvarez, while Cusi is the designated Cabinet officer for Regional Development and Security for Region IV-B.
“We are doing this without compromising our sovereignty. That’s one thing we can assure you as we progress in our exploration on how to develop and utilize the resources there at the West Philippine Sea,” the energy chief said.
“We need it to attain energy security,” Cusi said.
Cusi commended the Western Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines headed by Lt. Gen. Erickson Gloria for keeping watch over the Philippine territories in the area.
“We thank our uniformed people, the WESCOM, for keeping watch in that area and for protecting our territories,” Cusi said.
Cusi earlier said talks about the framework of the joint oil and gas exploration with China over the West Philippine Sea were ongoing.
“Under the disputed area, we are saying we have an MOU with China on how to go on a possible joint exploration so that we can exploit and make use of whatever resources are available in the area for the use of our country,” Cusi said.
“We are still working on that. We are still working on the way forward on how we can proceed with the joint exploration,” he said.
He said the second meeting for the framework was supposed to be held in February but did not push through because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We continue to pursue, we continue to discuss this with China…We are just exploring legal framework, operational framework,” he said.
Cusi said oil and gas exploration in the disputed area was under moratorium and the Philippines wanted to be able to operate in the area.
He said that while the government continued to push for oil and gas exploration, especially under the government’s Philippine Conventional Energy Contracting Program, investor interest might be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are foreseeing that the investment might be held back by the investors because of COVID. They will be rethinking whether it is worthwhile pursuing the project considering the problem with oil supply issue, whether the oil price will be able to recover,” Cusi said.
World oil prices plunged to all-time lows as global demand was brought to a standstill in the wake of the COVID health scare.
“Let’s be realistic because there will be tightening of credit, there will be some delay as some investors are withholding their capital investment so that will really affect [their investment decision,” Cusi said.