Coal Moratorium in the Philippines Could Herald Energy Transition in Asia

• Department of energy announced moratorium on new coal plants
• This could result in the cancellation of over 13 GW of new coal plants
• Philippines currently have world’s 7th biggest coal plant pipeline

The head of the Department of Energy of the Philippines, Alfonso Cusi, announced the enforcement of a moratorium on endorsing new coal-fired power plants in the country during the 2nd Global Ministerial Conference on System Integration of Renewables. [1] This latest energy policy of a Southeast Asian country signals the not so distant possibility of Asia’s transition away from coal and fossil fuel energy, an international network of NGOs said on Thursday. [2]

28 coal-fired power plants are currently operating in the Philippines, with a total installed capacity of 9.88 GW. The Philippines is currently ranked as the 7th biggest coal expansionist among 41 countries still adding to their coal fleet, claiming the top 3 spot among its Southeast Asian neighbors.

“The decision of the Philippine Department of Energy to cease its endorsement of new coal-fired power plants is an admission of what we have long been saying about coal: that it is environmentally destructive, incompatible with climate goals, and unable to power our economy sustainably and reliably. Grassroots and civil society movements here will stand guard to ensure that this hard-earned triumph results in the cancellation of all 13.79 GW of coal in the national pipeline, and the eventual phaseout of coal through a swift and just transition to renewable energy,” said Gerry Arances, Executive Director of the Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development, a think-tank based in Quezon City, Philippines.

“As one of the first Asian developing countries to initiate a move of this magnitude against the coal industry, the Philippines through the moratorium sends a strong message to government bodies and financiers in the region: that time is running out for coal. They better take the money they have been using to fuel the flames of climate change somewhere else – like building a booming renewable energy sector that would really benefit the stakeholders they claim to serve,” added Arances, who is also the Convenor of consumer rights and energy advocacy national network Power for People Coalition (P4P).

The Power for People Coalition is a network comprising consumer cooperatives, local communities and civil society organisations. P4P has organized widespread public protests with Catholic Church leaders to jointly ask the Philippines government to phase out coal. [3]

“The end of coal is here. With the moratorium announced by the Philippines and another announcement from South Korea on moving away from coal, we are at the cusp of a real transition. We hope the Philippines will use this moratorium to kickstart its transition towards a solar and wind led renewable energy system,” says Rayyan Hassan, Executive Director of NGO Forum on the ADB.

“This sends a clear signal to financial institutions like Standard Chartered, Mizuho, Bank of America, UBS, ING and others that have been providing corporate loans to coal plant developers in the Philippines. Financing coal plant or coal mine developers is no longer acceptable, be it in the Philippines or elsewhere,” says Heffa Schuecking from the German NGO Urgewald. 

"This means that public finance institutions, including export credit agencies and development finance institutions will have one less country to peddle an obsolete technology that pollutes the communities they purport to support," says Doug Norlen, Director, Economic Policy Program, Friends of the Earth U.S.

Notes:
[1] https://www.rappler.com/business/moratorium-endorsement-new-coal-power-plants-philippine-energy-policy-2020
[2] https://ceedphilippines.com/mapping-phs-coal-exit-ceeds-statement-on-does-coal-moratorium/
[3] https://businessmirror.com.ph/2020/08/31/quezon-church-leaders-seek-to-stop-new-coal-plants-in-the-province/