PNOC-EC pushes CNG plan for public tansport

MANILA, Philippines - State-run Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp. (PNOC-EC) is moving forward with the country’s natural gas program for public vehicles.

The company is looking to start operating a compressed natural gas (CNG) station in Laguna early next year and increase the number buses running on CNG, an official said.

In a briefing, Silvestre Punsalan III, vice-president of PNOC-EC, said the firm targets completing the takeover of the operations of the Mamplasan CNG station in Biñan, Laguna.

The CNG station will include new compressors and equipment that will make refilling faster, he said.

In April, PNOC-EC signed three memoranda of agreement “for the transfer to PNOC-EC of the lone set of mother-and-daughter CNG stations in Batangas and Laguna, which are owned by Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.”

PNOC-EC also took over the gas sales contract with the Malampaya consortium from Pilipinas Shell. It also agreed to provide CNG to bus operators.

“If Mamplasan gas station is successful, we will build more gas stations,” Punsalan said.

The state-owned oil and gas exploration firm earlier said it plans to build another CNG station at the Philippine Ports Authority complex in Batangas.

However, PNOC-EC has yet to complete the bidding for the equipment suppliers for the Mamplasan CNG station.

In June, the company posted a bid bulletin for the supply, delivery, installation, testing and commissioning of CNG equipment package. The opening of bids was earlier scheduled on July 3.

“Seven firms submitted for the CNG equipment, which is for review by the bids and awards committee,” Punsalan said.

To date, 37 CNG buses already hold a franchise from the transportation department. Punsalan said 27 additional CNG buses are awaiting for a franchise to operate.

The target is to increase CNG buses to 60 late this year and then 100 next year, which will encourage the construction of more CNG stations, Punsalan said.

He said this will be beneficial to consumers because CNG will cost cheaper than diesel.

“CNG can be used for jeepneys but in the meantime we want to see these in buses,” Punsalan said.

PNOC-EC will spend P400 million in the next two years as the lead agency in the Natural Gas Vehicle Program from Public Transport (NGVPPT).

The NGVPPT was formally created with the signing and implementation of Executive Order 290 in February 2004.

However, CNG bus operators have been criticizing the government’s lack of effort to promote the utilization of natural gas in the transport sector which, according to them, could prevent fare hikes and at the same time help attain a cleaner environment.

The energy department earlier signed an agreement with Shell for a pilot CNG project for the transport sector. The test period, which started in 2008, was supposed to run for seven years and would have involved 200 CNG-run buses.

But the pilot test for CNG had encountered a number of technical problems.

Based on the revised Philippine Energy Plan (2005-2014), the government had programmed 200 CNG buses for the Batangas-Manila route in 2006, which will be expanded to 2,000 CNG buses supported by 10 CNG refueling stations by 2007.