Natural gas: The new trend in power

MANILA, Philippines - Shell, a global leader in power, energy, and gas technology, is working to meet increasing energy demand and supply challenges by delivering smarter products and cleaner energy, smarter infrastructure, promoting smarter use and by developing new energy sources  all while addressing the impact on the environment, through advanced fuels and lubricants technology and by unlocking sources of cleaner burning-natural gas.  

In the Philippines, the company operates the Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power Project, which is one of the country’s largest and most significant industrial endeavors that harnesses indigenous natural gas from the deepwater reservoir northwest of Palawan. Malampaya provides 2,700 megawatts of electricity which accounts to 40 to 45 percent of Luzon’s power generation.

In the recent PowerTrends energy forum, Sebastian Quiniones, Managing Director of Malampaya consortium operator Shell Philippines Exploration, B.V. (SPEX), said at the panel discussion that natural gas is the cleanest and most sustainable fuel for development: “Malampaya displaces an estimated 1.35 million kilograms of carbon dioxide per hour — a cleaner and more sustainable energy process compared to energy generation using coal or fuel oil.”

 He noted that the Philippines still lags behind other developing countries in Asia when it comes to exploration activities for indigenous energy sources. “The Philippines’ vast energy reservoir potential remains untapped compared to its Asian neighbours,” he added. “Only 566 wells have been drilled in the Philippines in the last 100 years, compared to 400 wells drilled in Indonesia in just one year, according to the Petroleum Association of the Philippines.”

 In order to meet the country’s immediate economic targets and long-term projections of economic growth, Quiniones recommended lessening dependence on fuel imports, which can be achieved by sustaining the successes of the Malampaya Gas Project.

“Malampaya has reduced the Philippines’ oil imports by 30 percent. Further strengthening our country’s energy self-sufficiency can be achieved through exploration and development of other gas fields in the country,” said Quiniones.

The Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power Project is now embarking on its next stages of development — the Malampaya Phases 2 and 3 (MP2 and MP3). MP2 involves the construction of additional wells that, together with MP3’s additional gas platform that employs innovative deepwater technology, will safely and efficiently sustain the level of gas production from the Malampaya gas field.

Spearheaded by the Philippine Department of Energy, the Malampaya Gas Project is operated by Shell Philippines Exploration, B.V. (SPEX) on behalf of Joint Venture partners Chevron Malampaya LLC and Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) – Exploration Corp. (EC). SPEX manages Shell’s upstream business in the country, and specialises in the exploration and development of cleaner sources of energy to sustainably power the Philippines’ surging energy demand.