PH’s move to fully open renewable energy industry to foreigners cheered

Allowing foreigners full ownership of renewable energy projects in the Philippines will help improve overall business sentiments and lure more investments into the country, according to business groups.

Reacting to a Department of Justice (DOJ) legal opinion, American Chamber of Commerce senior adviser John Forbes told the Inquirer: “We welcome this development and expect that this will result in new and large inflow of foreign direct investments into renewable energy projects.”

“I think this is an excellent development because renewable energy is needed here. Basically, the whole world is looking into renewable energy. So, it’s timely. And international, European businesses will love it,” Henry Schumacher, president of the European Innovation, Technology and Science Center Foundation (EITSC), Inc. added.

In a legal opinion dated Sept. 29, the DOJ said Section 2, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution “only covers things that are susceptible to appropriation, thus excluding the sun, the wind, and the ocean.”

It said the phrase “all forces of potential energy” in the Constitution excluded “kinetic energy,” referring to the type of energy sources such as solar, wind, hydro and ocean or tidal energy.

“Moreover, the intent of the constitutional foreign ownership restriction was to preserve for Filipinos limited and exhaustible resources,” the DOJ said, adding:

“The compelling reason behind the constitutional foreign ownership restriction finds no application to inexhaustible renewable energy sources.”

According to Schumacher, the Philippines stands out in terms of its solar and wind energy potential.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) president George Barcelon also highlighted the country’s vast hydro and geothermal resources.

For Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion, however, foreign firms would be better off tapping local companies.

“The country needs help in the exploration, development and utilization of renewable energy sources to help us become more resilient and self-reliant,” he said in a statement sent to the Inquirer.

The Department of Energy had said that the country needed at least $121 billion in investments to achieve its clean energy goal. INQ