Joint oil and gas exploration may happen after a year

I arrived on time for my 8 a.m. breakfast meeting with Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, but I was surprised to see him already in the place, his coffee nearly finished. 

I thought I was early because for one, I got out of bed even before the roosters were up. I live two hours away from our meeting place in Bonifacio Global City, so I had to have enough lead time. 

Besides, government officials usually arrive later than the actual meeting time, so I thought Sec. Cusi would be late too.

But apparently he is very focused on schedules and timeframes. 

No exploration just yet

In fact, Sec. Cusi vowed to finish the framework for the joint oil and gas exploration within one year, as agreed upon by both parties. 

He clarified though that there’s no joint oil and gas exploration agreement yet. 

“What we have is an agreement to agree to find ways on how to resolve the issue,” Sec. Cusi told me. 

I’m thankful for the clarification because I really could not believe that he did not know anything about the memorandum of understanding (MOU) as he earlier told reporters. 

He explained there really is no joint exploration yet, which was why he said there’s no agreement yet. 

Blame it on semantics, he said.

With the signing of the MOU between Beijing and Manila during President Xi Jinping’s visit last week, both parties now have one year to work on the details. 

“We were given one year to find ways, so there’s no joint exploration yet, unless things change…if we are able to develop a framework that is legal,” Sec. Cusi said. 

Thus, the energy chief will soon meet with his Chinese counterpart to craft out a framework that will be amenable to both parties. 

He assured that he would only agree to an arrangement that would protect the country’s sovereign rights.

“We want to protect our sovereign rights. So we will look at how we can explore and harness the natural resources in the area while protecting our sovereign rights,” he said.

His priority, he said, is energy security. 

Malampaya is thinning out

I can understand his concern. 

The Malampaya natural gas, which supplies 70 percent of Luzon’s power requirements, is already thinning out. 

He does not want to be the energy secretary who will be blamed for not securing another power source for the country. 

“That’s the height of irresponsibility,” he said.

But Sec. Cusi promised that he would insist on a joint oil and gas framework that would uphold the Philippine Constitution and our sovereign rights. 

This I’d like to see, of course.  But for now, I’ll be cautiously optimistic. A lot can happen in a year. When the noise subsides, there may be unwanted insertions in the framework. 

I hope this does not happen.

As I said before, the Duterte administration must make sure that no sovereignty would be surrendered in the proposed agreement. I hope Sec. Cusi will indeed deliver on his promise. 

If he can muster the same willpower he had when he led the opening of NAIA Terminal 3 as general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) back in 2005 – despite the controversial legal obstacles and falling ceilings – then there’s reason to be optimistic.

I hope it will be better than the Malampaya agreement and there would indeed be no waiver of our sovereign rights under the arbitral ruling, which invalidated Beijing’s claim to most of the South China Sea. 

The Chinese government, for its part, is excited. 

“The MOU is a big step in the right direction. We will continue our discussion based on the spirit of the MOU and strive for substantial outcomes in the joint maritime oil and gas exploration and development so as to benefit the two countries and its peoples,” said Tan Qingsheng, chargé d’affaires of the Chinese embassy in Manila. 

It’s clear that both countries need fuel, and both know that there’s a hefty amount of oil and gas in the disputed areas.

Service Contract 72

Once both countries reach an agreement to jointly explore the disputed territory, the Philippine government may be able to lift the moratorium to explore the area.

Forum Energy, which holds a 70 percent interest in Service Contract 72 – which covers Recto Bank in the West Philippine Sea – may then be able to start drilling works without Chinese vessels blocking their moves.

It’s a running story and the ending is still up for anyone’s guess. But as we work on the details of this crucial framework in the next 12 months, let us remember one thing – that on July 12, 2016, the arbitration tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines. Indeed, the sea is ours. 

Iris Gonzales’ e-mail address is [email protected]