“The country’s oil reserves fell by 1.6 percent to 30.41 million barrels of oil in 2023 from 30.91 million bbl in 2022.”
MANILA, Philippines — The value of the country’s top-class fossil fuel reserves declined steeply in 2023, driven mainly by the lower valuation of coal stocks, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Based on PSA data, the total value of Class A coal, oil, natural gas and condensate reserves was down by 46.5 percent to P317.65 billion in 2023 from P594.22 billion a year ago.
“The total resource rent of the four non-renewable energy resources contributed P46.59 billion or 0.2 percent to the gross domestic product of the Philippines in 2023,” deputy national statistician Divina Gracia del Prado said.
For Class A coal reserves alone, the monetary value declined by 49 percent to P271.57 billion in 2023 from P529.66 billion in 2022.
Top-class oil reserves were valued at P15.99 billion in 2023, down by 16 percent from P19.07 billion.
Similarly, the valuation of natural gas reserves saw a 68-percent decline to P7.28 billion from P22.67 billion, while that of the attendant condensate from gas inched down to P22.807 billion from P22.81 billion.
In terms of volume, coal reserves increased by nearly 18 percent to 411.71 million metric tons (MMT) from 349.61 MMT. Coal extraction was also higher last year, by 21.5 percent, to 19.56 MMT, compared to 16.11 MMT.
Oil reserves fell by 1.6 percent to 30.41 million barrels of oil from 30.91 million bbl oil, while extraction decreased by 10.2 percent to 501,200 bbl oil from 558,280 bbl oil.
Natural gas reserves plunged by almost 81 percent to 19.55 billion standard cubic feet of gas (SCF) from 100.21 billion SCF, while extraction slipped by 28.1 percent to 80.66 billion SCF from 112.17 billion SCF.
Further, condensate reserves improved by 19.3 percent to eight million barrels from 6.71 million barrels, while condensate extraction dropped by 29.6 percent to 1.9 million barrels from 2.71 million barrels.
Class A energy reserves refer to “commercially recoverable resources that are confirmed to be economically viable by a defined development project or operation,” the PSA said.