The Philippines was on its way to energy independence during the Marcos era, when the government-owned PNOC was established.

The Philippines is falling behind its Southeast Asian neighbors in terms of energy independence as the country continues to rely heavily on oil and gas imports while energy demand continues to increase.

This was the dominant sentiment of energy leaders from the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries who gathered for an in-depth panel session called “Energy Independence: Indigenous is Energy Security” during this year’s Powertrends held last 3 September at the SMX Convention Center, Manila.

The energy experts who participated in the panel discussion were Dr. Arthur Saldivar-Sali, author of “Black Gold: The Search for Oil to Power a Nation” and former Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) Chief Geologist; Anton Safronov, chief commercial officer of Parami Energy (Myanmar); Kiril Caral, managing counsel of Shell Philippines B.V.; Ramon Clarete, project director of Gas Policy Development Project (GPDP); Jeoffrey Caranto, president of National Geothermal Association of the Philippines (NGAP); and Rob Fisher, Development manager of Tamarind Resources (Malaysia).

The panelists provided insights on what the country can learn from its neighboring nations who have achieved energy independence. The discussion also served as an opportunity to review the Philippines’ current energy situation and what the country needs to do to address the increasing energy demand.

According to Dr. Sali, the Philippines was on its way to energy independence during the Marcos era, when the government-owned (PNOC was established.

Dr. Sali, who served as PNOC chief Geologist, Technical Director of the Petroleum Board, and Deputy Director of the Bureau of Energy Department at the time, said the PNOC was “drilling 10 exploration wells a year and had one discovery every year from 1974 to 1986.” Their initiatives also pushed the Philippines to rank second in geothermal power just after the United States.