Accerated decarbonization to leave $10b worth of stranded coal plants

By Alena Mae S. Flores

THE World Bank said Thursday an accelerated decarbonization scenario would leave the Philippines with $10 bilion worth of stranded coal-fired power plants.

“The accelerated decarbonization scenario will have a tremendous impact on the power system technology mix.

What this tells us is if the Philippines is aspiring to reach carbon neutrality by mid-century, it really has to ramp up renewable energy investment dramatically and at the same time start to phase down coal-fired power around 2030,” said WB senior energy specialist and infrastructure program leader for the Philippines Feng Liu.

This is because coal still accounted for about 43 percent of the country’s installed capacity as of 2021, based on Department of Energy records.

The WB’s Philippines Economic Report said phasing down coal-fired power would result in substantial stranded assets. It said less than three gigawatts (3,000 MW) of coal-fired power plants would be in operation by 2040 under the ADS, compared to about 14 GW under the current power scenario.

“The present value of the financial losses due to stranded CFPPs is about $10 billion under the ADS. Current CFPPs (11 GW in 2020) in the Philippines are relatively young, most of them having been commissioned no early than 2010,” the report said.

It said the coal power plant phasedown would take place from 2028 to 2040 under the ADS, requiring effective solutions to address the financial cost of the stranded assets of privately owned CFPPs.

The WB said the Philippines should conduct a better assessment of the economic, social and financial risks of stranded assets, not only for coal but also for natural gas infrastructure, as it pursues an accelerated decarbonized pathway.

“While the Philippines has limited domestic production of coal, coal mines as well as the existing 30 or so CFPPs will need to be gradually retired to achieve the net-zero goal,” it said.

DTI warns e-commerce platforms on online sales of fake, pirated items

By Othel V. Campos

TRADE Secretary Alfredo Pascual on Thursday ordered the country’s two major e-commerce platforms to submit an explanation on recent cases of deceptive, unfair, fraudulent and unconscionable online sales practices.

FILIPINO ENTREPRENEUR. Converge ICT Inc. co-founder and chief executive Dennis Anthony Uy is representing the Philippines in the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year awards in Monte Carlo, Monaco. He is joining 44 other global business leaders in the global competition for entrepreneurs on June 6 to 9. The Converge CEO was recognized the Philippines’ EY Entrepreneur of the Year and Master Entrepreneur in November 2022 after he bested 17 other Filipino finalists for his pivotal role in bringing digital connectivity to Filipinos across the country. Uy’s rise from a young migrant with a hunger for technology and innovation to a major player in the telecommunications industry exemplifies the persevering spirit of Filipino business owners.

“We received a report regarding scammers and sellers of defective, fake and pirated products in e-commerce platforms. I have already issued a letter addressed to two big e-commerce platforms for them to remove unregistered and unlicensed online merchants. Following numerous notifications, they were given 72 hours to explain,” Pascual said in a statement.

He said the DTI was undertaking appropriate measures to intensify the campaign against fraudulent sales practices, particularly in the virtual sales platform.

“I assure Filipino consumers that we are here to promote and protect their welfare and make sure that these sellers will be made accountable. As we promote the use of e-commerce platforms, we want to make sure that these spaces will be safe for consumers,” Pascual said.

The report received by the department indicated that several consumers lodged complaints against various online sellers of fake, defective or undelivered parcels.

The DTI said sales malpractice is a criminal offense under Republic Act Nos. 7394 and 8293, and Joint Administrative Order No. 22-01, Series of 2022 or the Guidelines for Online Business Reiterating the Laws and Regulations Applicable to Online Businesses and Consumers.

Pascual urged e-commerce platforms to immediately address the concerns of consumers who fell victim to deceptive sellers and seriously adhere to the prohibition against deceptive, unfair and unconscionable online sales and practices.

Pag-IBIG released P15.82b in cash loans in four months to help over 700,000 members

PAG-IBIG Fund released P15.82 billion in cash loans in the first four months of the year, an increase of 5 percent from P15.10 billion in the same period last year, agency officials said Wednesday.

The amount of multi-purpose loans disbursed by the agency helped 728,653 members with their financial needs, it said.

“We at Pag-IBIG Fund exert all efforts in providing our members with assistance on their financial needs. We are happy to note that through our Pag-IBIG Multi-Purpose

Loan, we were able to aid more than 700 thousand Filipino workers gain added funds to tend to their needs. All our efforts are in line with the call of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. to provide the best service to the Filipino people,” said Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar, who leads the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the 11-member Pag-IBIG Fund board of trustees. Pag-IBIG Fund’s MPL is the agency’s affordable and easily accessible cash loan.

Under MPL, qualified members can borrow up to 80 percent of their total Pag-IBIG regular savings, which consist of their monthly contributions, their employer’s contributions and accumulated dividends earned. The proceeds can be used to pay for tuition fees, medical expenses, minor home improvement, a family trip or even serve as capital for small businesses. The loan is payable in 24 or 36 monthly installments, with the first payment deferred for two months.

The Pag-IBIG MPL comes at a low interest rate of 10.5 percent per year. In the past years, the agency has returned more than 90 percent of its income to its members in the form of dividends.

Pag-IBIG Fund chief executive Marilene Acosta said the agency provides members with numerous ways to conveniently apply for a Pag-IBIG MPL through more than 200 branches, the online facility Virtual PagIBIG found on its website and the Virtual Pag-IBIG mobile app.

SPNEC prepares to start Nueva Ecija

expansion

SOLAR energy provider SP New Energy Corp. is set to break ground this year on the 3,000-hectare Nueva Ecija expansion project, dubbed as one of the world’s largest solar power plants.

SPNEC founder and president Leandro Antonio Leviste said the Nueva Ecija expansion project, which would house over 3,500 megawatts of solar power farms, would be whollyowned by the company.

“This year we will break ground on the Nueva Ecija expansion project, which will be one of the world’s largest solar plants, which will be wholly owned or fully controlled by SPNEC,” Leviste said.

Leviste said the company secured 2,000 hectares of land between Bulacan and Nueva Ecija provinces and is on track to complete 3,000 hectares and convert the usage for the land to industrial use within the year.

Leviste said SPNEC used the proceeds from its recent capital raising activities and initial P2-billion capital infusion by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. to complete the land acquisition.

SPNEC is also starting to construct a transmission line to connect to National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ substations that supply the Greater Manila Area. Jenniffer B. Austria Gov’t

to decide on best model to privatize NAIA

THE unsolicited offer of the Manila International Airport Consortium to upgrade and rehabilitate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport is still alive even as the Department of Transportation submitted a solicited public private partnership model to the National Economic and Development Authority.

“We are proceeding right now in parallel ... at the moment. That’s where we are,” Transportation Undersecretary for aviation and airports Roberto Lim said in a virtual briefing.

“We will coordinate with NEDA. We just submitted it, and they are still evaluating it. It’s under evaluation. We hope that the decision will come soon, maybe in a month or two,” he said.

The DOTr and the Manila International Airport Authority submitted a joint proposal for the P141-billion NAIA solicited PPP project for approval by NEDA board, giving the private concessionaire 15 years to operate the airport and recover its investment. Lim said the NEDA board, chaired by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., would decide the best model to privatize the NAIA.

Darwin G. Amojelar

PGMPI eyes partners in extraction of rare earth elements in PH

A CONSORTIUM of institutional investors from South Korea and the Philippine General Minerals Project Inc. are actively exploring opportunities for collaboration and partnership for the sustainable extraction of critical minerals and rare earth elements in the Philippines.

PGMPI president and chief executive Antonio Parlade Jr. said the business consortium Busan Equity Partners led by Yonsung Lee and the firm he founded had made several significant discussions and steps towards a potential privatepublic-partnership with the South Korean investors, aligning with the Korean government’s requirements for strategic metals.

BEP officials visited the country in April, days after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed intention to source critical mineral requirements from the Philippines and Indonesia, aiming to reduce their reliance on China by at least 50 percent.

“These metals are of utmost significance and importance to South Korea’s highly industrialized sectors, including prominent manufacturing giants such as Samsung, Hyundai, and POSCO, thus highlighting the urgency of the Philippine government’s response on the matter,” said Parlade, a retired military general.

BEP officials, accompanied by PGMI executives, met on different dates with Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual Jr. and Board of Investments vice chairman Ceferino Rodolfo, Development Bank of the Philippines director Maria Lourdes Arcenas and president and chief executive Michael de Jesus.

The DTI and BOI expressed optimism about the project and pledged to coordinate with counterparts for the Philippines-South Korea Joint Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to facilitate future collaborations with PGMPI.