State-owned Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) will launch a tender in 2018 intended to find an investor and partner for its long-touted liquefied natural gas import scheme if a viable proposal does not land before the end of the year.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi has essentially given PNOC until 31 December to garner unsolicited proposals for an LNG import facility and related gas and power projects that could require investments of up to $2 billion.

The government is said to be interested in either a joint venture project or build-operate-transfer model for the LNG import project.

South Korea’s Kepco has become the latest company to submit an unsolicited proposal to construct an LNG terminal to the Philippines government although it is too early to know how this proposal will be evaluated. Kepco (Korea Electric Power Corporation) is no stranger to the Philippines, where it operates the Ilijan power plant at Batangas that receives feedstock gas from Shell’s offshore Malampaya field.

The Department of Energy has tasked PNOC to develop an integrated LNG hub including storage, liquefaction, regasification and distribution facilities and an associated power plant with initial capacity of 20 megawatts.

PNOC officials earlier indicated that a floating storage and regasification unit could be deployed first while the onshore facilities are being constructed.

Despite the government having its sights on LNG imports for at least a couple of decades, no project has yet got off the drawing board.

Weekly

PNOC to launch LNG facility tender if no proposals land