European firms eye energy-related investments in RP

Nearly 60 energy-related companies from Europe will be in Manila in the next two months looking for new business opportunities including joint ventures and other forms of partnerships with Filipino firms.

These companies are from Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. They specialize in new and renewable energy (NRE) technologies, energy saving technologies, rural electrification, hydropower stations, energy recycling, grid and transmission technologies, and other energy-related technologies.

Some 20 companies from the United Kingdom will be meeting in Manila on Oct. 25 looking for commercial opportunities in the NRE sub-sector. The meeting will also serve as a venue for an exchange of views on the increasingly popular sub-sector of the energy industry.

Under the initiative of the British Embassy, the UKs Department of Trade and Industry, and Philippines’ Department of Energy (DOE), companies like the BP Solar, National Grid, Alstom Power, Rolls-Royce Power Ventures, and Hamilton Gibson Consortium will be looking for wider business opportunities in the country.

NRE technology refers to an environmentally-friendly energy technology that can reduce the dependence on expensive fossil fuel for developing countries like the Philippines. Among these technologies are solar, hydro, bio-mass, wind and even tidal.

According to studies undertaken by Shell International Petroleum Co., renewable energy will account for 30 to 50 percent of future energy demand by 2050.

"Business opportunities are limitless in the case of foreign firms looking for business opportunities in the Philippines," said Gerry D. Constantino, investment promotions manager of the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP).

Constantino added that not only are the major business groups coming to Manila but also the small and medium scale companies from the six countries mentioned. That means opportunities also for smaller local companies looking at the energy sector for business opportunities.

In fact, the European Commission (EC) has allocated 2.5 million euros (approximately P102.5 million) as promotional funds for European companies wanting to do exploratory talks or surveys.

Meanwhile, more companies mostly from France are arriving next month in search of business opportunities in the Philippines. Among them are: energy financing firms Ademe, rural electrification specialist Gaudriot SA, photovoltaic (solar power) cell manufacturer Photowall International, and mini-hydroelectric power stations expert S.E.E.E.

The ECCP manager explained that a number of these companies are looking at small-scale projects that are doable, economical and with long term benefits.

"The Philippines is a good source for NRE development, especially agricultural waste turned into electricity, like bagasse (waste of sugar cane)," Constantino pointed out. "The prospects here for barangay-level energizing is limitless."

Also expected to generate businesses and a steady stream of knowledge is the 13th Conference of the Electricity Supply Industry or CEPSI 2000 which will have over 2,000 delegates coming from 39 countries worldwide.

The five-day conference will be held in Manila starting Oct. 23. It is held every two years as the major communications forum at the Association of the Electricity Supply industry of East Asia and the Western Pacific (AESIEAP).

The AESIEAP is the most prestigious power industry sector organization covering 100 power firms and utilities from 17 countries in the Asia Pacific region. A trade exhibit participated in by over a hundred companies from all over the world will be held simultaneously.