For new DOE head, a delicate balancing act

Newly appointed Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla will focus on all issues and concerns governing the local fuel and electricity sectors as developments in these two areas alone have the biggest impact on the ordinary Filipino consumer.

In his first press briefing on Tuesday, Petilla admitted that while he has yet to learn the ropes, he already noted that fuel and electricity constituted the most pressing issues in the Department of Energy (DOE), particularly when it comes to demand, supply and pricing.

He said that he is well aware of the fact that any price spikes or supply shortages would be enough to earn the ire of the consuming Filipino public.

This thrust also dovetails with President Aquino’s marching orders when he directed the 49-year-old Petilla to pick up from where former Energy Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras had left off—which is to stabilize the supply of electricity and make it more affordable, while implementing a more stringent monitoring and analysis of fuel price movements to ensure that any price adjustments made by local oil companies can be justified.

According to Petilla, there is a need to ensure a balance between “what the consumers can afford and what the environment can afford.” This means that the agency will have to maintain a healthy mix of the so-called clean energy sources and fossil fuels to ensure affordable and adequate supply.

“There are concerns on the effect of [fossil fuels like coal on] the environment. I think in the Philippines, we’re already at least 40 percent green. So we will review now the pending contracts to see if we have a balance between renewable energy and also the coal and oil-based plants, because if we go all renewable energy, it will be expensive.… At this point, I have to admit that I have a bias for geothermal energy for obvious reason,” Petilla said.

Prior to accepting the Energy post, Petilla was on his third and last term as governor of Leyte, which hosts the Unified Leyte geothermal complex.