APEC CHALLENGE
Members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) were encouraged to learn from the Philippines, which is set to implement next year a road map to conserve energy.
“I’m very happy to see that our (country) host already has a Conservation Action Plan until 2020. I hope we can learn from the Philippine experience,” Li Pengcheng, chairman of the APEC Experts Group on Energy Efficiency and Conservation (EGEEC), told colleagues at the start of their meeting yesterday.
Energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos said the Philippines is set to implement next year the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Road Map to reduce energy consumption for 2016 to 2020.
Among others, the road map seeks to provide financial incentives for energy-efficient vehicles and include energy efficiency among the requirements in the National Building Code.
This medium-term plan will prepare the country for the long-term objective of reducing energy consumption by 40 percent in 2030 compared to a 2010 baseline.
The plan calls for reduced energy consumption of 1.6 percent per year and energy savings of up to one-third of current demand.
“For our energy efficiency programs, we have generated energy savings of 1.6 million tons of oil equivalent for the same year as of 2013,” Marcos said as he welcomed the delegates to the 46th EGEEC meeting yesterday.
Aside from implementing the road map, Philippine initiatives to reduce energy consumption include retrofitting of public lighting, public offices, state universities and street lights as well as distribution of energy-efficient lights and the conduct of consumer education on energy efficiency and demand-side management.
Marcos hoped that the discussions will guide senior officials in drafting the regional energy road map, which will be submitted for approval by the energy ministers in October.
“I trust that APEC will tackle interventions to mitigate effects of climate change through energy efficiency and push for an environment-friendly and developed economy,” Marcos said.
In the next two days, the delegates will discuss developments in smart grids, energy management systems, standards and labeling, energy intensity reduction and transport fuel efficiency.
They are also scheduled to visit the Mandaue City Hall for a briefing on the city’s green building program and the San Miguel Brewery in Mandaue to learn its best practices.
Marcos said he believed there would be breakthrough discussions on how APEC economies can reinforce energy conservation initiatives.
He stressed the need for strong support from the energy industry stakeholders in carrying out the road map.
Aside from providing financial incentives for energy-efficient vehicles, the road map also seeks to develop roles of utilities as key implementation partners and information providers, outline energy-efficiency programs for low-income households, promote green building ratings and push for stronger coordination with other levels of government.
Marcos noted that the Philippines currently ranks second among the largest geothermal producers in the world, with an installed capacity of 1,868 megawatts (MW) as of 2013.
The country’s hydro sector has an installed capacity of 3,521 MW, which comprises 20.32 percent of the total energy production.
Wind, solar and biomass energy production is at 153 MW with a realized self-sufficiency of 56 percent.
The EGEEC meeting is a bi-annual forum participated in by representatives of the 21 APEC economies.
It is one of over 100 meetings being held in Cebu as part of the APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM3) until this weekend.