Expanded list of EEC projects qualified for tax perks sought

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Energy Efficiency Alliance (PE2) has called on the government to expand the types of energy efficiency and conservation (EEC) projects that would qualify for tax incentives.

PE2 said it has submitted a proposal to the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Board of Investments (BOI), asking both agencies to consider additional project types to be eligible for fiscal perks under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act.

“While we are aware that both DOE and BOI are reviewing their respective EEC guidelines for fiscal incentives to capture rooftop solar facilities, it may be a suitable opportunity for both agencies to review the list of eligible projects for DOE endorsement and BOI registration,” PE2 president Alexander Ablaza said.

“Beyond the traditional energy efficiency projects aimed at reducing specific energy consumption of private sector and government energy end-users, larger projects involving clean energy production for 100 percent off-take by the establishments should be explicitly included in the list,” he said.

Among those that the group is proposing that end-users, energy service companies (ESCO) and third-party project developers (TPPDs) include as eligible projects are energy efficiency and ESCO projects or EEC measures to improve energy efficiency of a system or consumption within a defined project boundary.

It also seeks for the inclusion of own-use renewable energy facilities and cleaner fuel and transition fuel-based generation facilities that are not exporting power to the grid, as well as energy storage systems which are also not exporting power to the grid and intended to store energy of an end-user for use at a later time.

Also being proposed for tax perks eligibility are waste heat recovery or combined heat and power facilities not exporting power to the grid and intended to capture waste heat and other forms of waste energy to be converted and cycled back to the end-user’s operations as useful forms of energy.