DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED energy output on an oil-equivalent basis rose 3% in 2019, led by coal, according to a report issued by the Department of Energy (DoE).
“Aggregate indigenous energy production reached 30.9 MTOE (megatons of oil equivalent) in 2019, 3.0% than its year-ago level of 30 MTOE in 2018,” the Energy Department said in an Energy Situationer.
The DoE classifies as indigenous energy fossil fuels and renewable energy, including those from biofuels which were extracted in the country.
“Coal contributed to the bulk of the increase with its 17% hike in domestic production, while notable increments were registered in production levels of geothermal (2.4%) and biofuels (2.7%),” it said.
However, the report found that coal accounted for 23.5% in terms of contribution to total indigenous production, behind geothermal (29.8%) and biomass (25.1%).
According to the situationer, the bulk of the domestically-produced coal, equivalent to 7.3 MTOE, was accounted for by Semirara Mining and Power Corp. Output from other coal mines fell 33.4% in 2019.
Domestic production of oil, crude oil and condensate fell 12% in 2019, while natural gas production from the Malampaya field fell 0.7%.
“Crude oil production plunged by 38.6% to 104.3 KTOE (kilotons of oil equivalent) in 2019 since oil wells located in Nido, Matinloc and North Matinloc have ceased operation,” according to the report.
It added that condensate from the Malampaya project fell 1.4% in 2019. Meanwhile, natural gas from the Malampaya offshore plant rose 0.7 % to 3.6 MTOE in 2019.
“The almost same level of natural gas production is attributable to the maintenance implemented during the year, which affected the operation of all natural gas power plants including the PSPC (Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.) refinery,” it said. — Angelica Y. Yang
