PPPs to help develop resilient power infrastructure – APEC

CEBU, Philippines – Public-Private-Partnerships will play an important role in developing resilient energy infrastructure projects, an energy official said.

Philippine Department of Energy Undersecretary Loreta G. Ayson said PPP is a better means to boost energy infrastructure investments.

“The role of the private sector is very important as far as putting in place energy projects in power generation and distribution to meet the increasing demand of power,” Ayson told the media in a briefing Monday at the sidelines of the 12th Energy Ministers’ Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) bloc in Mactan, Cebu.

Ayson said that cooperation among the APEC member economies in pursuing good but expensive energy investments should be strengthened. She particularly made mention of the underground installation of transmission lines as a good technology but is costly.

“We can work this out as a region not just in technical assistance but also in terms of financing,” Ayson noted.

Ayson pointed out earlier that under the Energy Act of 2008, incentives are given to private companies that will help build energy projects and sources of renewable energy.

So far, she said, the Department of Energy (DOE) has approved 682 projects to increase energy reliability in the country.

Dr. Phyllis G. Yoshida, chair of APEC’s Energy Working Group, said private firms are urged to participate in PPPs and to invest more.

“Governments can’t put a lot of investments in infrastructure, so we meet with CEOs to hear their views,” Yoshida said.

While APEC does not generally provide financing, Yoshida explained the different models of financing for energy projects can be discussed by its member economies. “We work with ADB (Asian Development Bank) to find how to get investments,” the group chair said.

APEC business advisory council

On Monday, the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) also conducted the Energy CEO Roundtable to bring energy CEOs and discuss how energy firms can help in achieving the goals toward increased investments in energy resiliency. ABAC is the voice of business of the 21-economy bloc.

"APEC and its member economies need to cooperate with the private sector including ABAC, towards fostering public-private-partnerships that will encourage the adoption of appropriate standards for critical energy infrastructure," Senator Loren Legarda spoke before the delegates of the 12th APEC Energy Ministerial Meeting held yesterday at the Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort and Spa.

Legarda expressed support to ABAC’s advocacy and forthcoming move in the region's sustainable energy agenda, saying "I join ABAC in welcoming the APEC Leaders' ambitious commitment to double the share of renewables in power generation by 2030."

In the Philippines for example, she said estimates indicate that the country has some 246,000 megawatts of untapped renewable energy capacity, which is 13 times more than the current installed capacity.

"Failure to develop these capacities would be unforgivable," said Legarda who authored the Renewable Energy Act of 2008.

The environment-activist Senator also told APEC leaders that the 21 economies in the region need to work seriously with the private sector to develop clean and energy-efficient, climate-friendly technologies.

"I welcome ABAC's initiatives that seek to build a culture of innovation in our economies," she added.

ABAC is the voice of business sector in the APEC.

The Asia Pacific region, according to ADB, requires between US$7 trillion and US$9.7 trillion in the energy sector from 2005 to 2030.

Therefore, there is a need for the member economies to create a fiscal space for investments in climate resilient infrastructure, by providing easier access to markets, finance, and innovation.

"Energy trade and investment can be affected by barriers which create obstacles to fair competition. These come in form of quotas, export subsidies, procedural hurdles, local content requirements. They can also come in the form of "behind-the-border barriers" such as poorly functioning financial markets, weak legal systems, restrictive regulatory approaches, and others," she said.

In her opening speech during the APEC Energy Ministers-CEO Dialogue yesterday morning,  ABAC-Philippines chairperson Doris Magsaysay-Ho said the organization's members meet four times a year to prepare recommendations they will present to leaders with shared mission to further APEC goals of sustainable and quality growth.

"ABAC Philippines felt there would be great value to invite a select group of CEOs to deep dive into opportunities and risks impacting the way private and public sectors, design future energy policies and make investments  either through public spending or public-private partnership," Magsaysay-Ho said.