LNG proponents urged to rethink business plan

By Lenie Lectura – September 3, 2024
from Business Mirror

A coalition advocating for the protection of the Verde Island Passage (VIP) on Monday welcomed the cancellation of a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal of Vires Energy Corp. (VEC), a subsidiary of A Brown Co. Inc. (ABCI) of businessman Walter Brown.

“This cancellation is a win for the fisherfolk, members of the faith community, and stewards of Creation decrying the impacts of LNG to communities and our environment. There is now one project less in the gas fleet bringing destruction to our Amazon of the oceans.

With this move, A Brown Co. also confirmed just how high-risk an investment LNG really is. All that are still backing the LNG buildout in the country should rethink their business decisions,” said Fr. Edwin Gariguez, Lead Convenor of Protect VIP.

VEC has informed the Department of Energy (DOE) that it is withdrawing the notice to proceed (NTP) issued in 2021 for the LNG project in Simlong, Batangas. The NTP covers its proposed integrated LNG floating storage and regasification facility (FSRU), which includes a 450-megawatt (MW) floating power plant. The FSRU was supposed to be operational by January 2025.

Instead, VEC may proceed to procure LNG from third-party sources that will fuel its planned gas power plant.“This model will leverage existing gas infrastructure in the Batangas area to support the development of new power plants and will also shorten the time when power generation can happen since VEC will no longer need to construct an LNG terminal,” ABCI said last week.

Protect VIP, however, expressed alarm over a plan to double the capacity of its proposed LNG power plant project to 900MW from the original 450 MW. The project will also be converted into an onshore facility.

“We’re dismayed that A Brown and Vires are keeping their ears shut to the rejection by fisherfolk and other sectors of gas and LNG. When these power plants are built, the coasts that serve as spawning ground to fish are destroyed; the very large tankers carrying LNG are also a cause for concern.

Many families will also be robbed of the only livelihood they know if they are pushed to leave the coasts because of these projects,” said Restituto Bobadilla of Bukluran ng mga Mangingisda sa Batangas-Batangas City.

According to Protect VIP, the revised project proposition should be held against the strictest environmental standards by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). This includes a recent Court of Appeals decision to a continuing mandamus petition filed by Protect VIP, mandating the agency to finally issue rules under the Clean Water Act on restricting sources of pollution in bodies of water found to have alarming levels of pollution, as is the case for parts of the VIP.

“We urge the DENR to ensure the most rigorous environmental compliance by A Brown Co., especially with the significantly different nature and capacity of the project from when its compliance certificate was issued in 2017.

At the same time, we look forward to the long overdue issuance of rules on non-attainment areas. The VIP and other bodies of water across the country have been suffering from unchecked pollution from gas and other environmentally critical projects for far too long,” said Gerry Arances, Executive Director of sustainability think-tank Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED).

ACBI did not immediately respond to a BusinessMirror request for comment on Monday.

Image credits: www.protectvip.org