Philippine government aims to secure USD 250m for geothermal derisking facility
Discharge of the first well, Mai6D on Maibarara project site, Philippines (source: Maibarara Geothermal Inc.)
Carlo Cariaga
30 Sep 2024
The Philippine Department of Energy is working to secure USD 250 million to fund a de-risking facility for geothermal projects in the pre-development stage.
The Department of Energy of the Philippines is working to secure funding of USD 250 million for a planned facility to de-risk geothermal projects in the country. With the framework for the Geothermal Resource De-Risking Facility (GRDF) now finalized, the government agency is currently in talks with financing partners for the programme.
These updates were announced by Mylene Capongcol, Director of the Renewable Energy Management Bureau of the DOE, during the 5th Philippine International Geothermal Conference (PIGC) held in Makati.
The DOE, along with the Asian Development Bank, has been working on a geothermal de-risking facility for the Philippines for the past few years. The proposed model is for the facility to provide up to 50% of the initial costs for exploration and drilling for eligible geothermal developers and operators.
According to Marvin Bailon, Vice-President of local geothermal company Energy Development Corporation (EDC), companies typically allocated Php1.5 to 2 billion (approx. USD 26.8 to 35.7 million) for the drilling of the first two wells during the geothermal exploration phase. Bailon also commented that it would be a big help for the companies if the government could subsidize costs for geothermal exploration.
Capongol further added that the DOE is currently already in talks with the International Monetary Fund, the Department of Finance, Philippine Guarantee Corp., the Development Bank of the Philippines, and the Land Bank of the Philippines.
Source: Inquirer.net
