Oil deposit in Alegria town in Cebu to be “re-explored” through cooperation

Cesafinews | Oil deposit in Alegria town in Cebu to be “re-explored” through cooperation | CEBU CITY – In a statement made public on Thursday, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia announced that private companies will be collaborating with the province of Cebu to advance petroleum and natural gas development in the southwest town of Alegria.

Garcia made the decision as Undersecretary Alessandro Sales of the Department of Energy (DOE) was in the province capitol on Thursday to advise the governor that the agency intends to keep exploring and drilling for oil in Barangay Montepeller in the municipality.

After finding an estimated 27.93 million barrels of oil and a possible recovery of 3.35 million barrels of crude oil—a conservative estimate of 12 percent of total oil in place and reserves—China International Mining Petroleum Co. Ltd. (CIMP) began producing commercial quantities of natural gas and oil in 2020.

In addition, the business discovered natural gas reserves of around 9.42 BCF, with an estimated recoverable resource of 6.6 BCF, or around 70% of the total natural gas in place.

However, in 2023, the DOE ended their contract with CIMP because the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic rendered them unable of performing adequately.

In order to re-explore the Montpeller oil reserves, Garcia dropped hints about the prospect of forming a public-private partnership (PPP).

The town’s latent oil and gas resources may be explored and used through partnerships between private enterprises and the capitol, she added.

The Mactan-Cebu International Airport operations, the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway, and the joint venture agreements with Filinvest Land and Manila Water are all examples of large-scale projects in Cebu that have been effectively achieved through PPP, she said.

According to the governor, a 150 MW solar power plant will be constructed in the northern town of Daanbantayan. The project will be a joint venture between the province and a group of companies led by the Spanish company Acciona Energia Global and Freya Renewables Inc.

A statement from the capitol’s information office states that Sales is receptive to Garcia’s idea and is prepared to mediate discussions between the province and prospective investors. (via PNA)