AboitizPower’s solar power project in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental (Photo courtesy of AEV)
MANILA – Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Thursday renewed his call for an energy transition as the country’s dependency on coal-fired power has surpassed that of Indonesia and China.
"An energy transition measure is necessary as the country gears towards increased use of renewable energy sources," he said in a news release.
Gatchalian said data from energy think tank Ember showed that the Philippines’ share of coal in electricity generation rose for the 15th straight year in 2023 despite the target to cut dependence on the fuel to less than half of total power output by 2030.
He said from January to June this year, the average generation charge of Meralco for coal was PHP7.4 per kilowatt hour (kWh) compared to PHP4.18 per kWh for solar, a rate difference of about 44 percent.
Gatchalian cited the need to come up with an energy transition measure that would push the country closer to its green energy goals and bring down the country’s dependence on coal-fired energy.
He said an energy transition plan would help accelerate the use of renewable energy sources.
This, in turn, would help reduce the cost of energy prices and the country's vulnerability to global events that tend to result in price fluctuations.
Gatchalian earlier filed Senate Bill 157 or the Energy Transition Act, which provides for the creation of an Energy Transition Plan to phase out fossil fuel plants and achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
He said a measure effecting an energy transition plan would help ensure the country would achieve its goal of removing coal from its energy mix by 2050. (Leonel Abasola/PNA)
