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Industry group belies Leviste claim DOE not helping renewable energy players

Article (news)

Alvin Elchico

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — An energy industry group has denied a claim by Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste that the Department of Energy is not helping renewable energy players.Leviste has been blaming the government for the failure of his companies to comply with commitments to construct solar energy facilities based on service contracts, which were recently canceled by the Department of Energy.In an interview with Gising Pilipinas on DZMM on Wednesday, Leviste again said that it was not accurate that he was penalized P24 billion due to his companies&#x27; failure to fulfill service contractual obligations.According to Leviste, he has not received any demand letter from the DOE, while also insisting that he has not received a single centavo from the government.While Leviste admitted that some of his companies were not able to build any solar energy infrastructure, this was allegedly the fault of government.&quot;That&#x27;s  the nature of the business na lahat naman po ng mga kumpanya na alam nyo ay nagpaplano, gusto sanang kumita para magtayo ng bagong planta. Pero dahil sa hirap ng pagnenegosyo sa Pilipinas, ginigipit nga ang ibang mamumuhunan ng mga opisyal. Lumabas hindi lang ako, buong industriya, hirap at kinakansela ang sariling mga proyekto,&quot; said Leviste.(That&#x27;s the nature of the business, that all companies plan to earn and set up plants. But because of the difficulty of doing business, some businessmen are pressured by some officials. It&#x27;s not just me, but the whole industry, due to difficulties, they are canceling their own projects.)But the Developers of Renewable Energy for AdvanceMent (DREAM), which represents several renewable energy (RE) industry associations, denied Leviste&#x27;s assertion.DREAM President Jay Layug said Leviste&#x27;s claim is not true, as the government, particularly the DOE, helps investors put up facilities to ensure that more renewable energy sources are in place. &quot;Yung mahirap kumuha ng permit, di naman po talaga madali. But ang pamahalaan especially ang Department of Energy, tinutulungan po nila lahat ng developers,” Layug said.(Getting permits is really not easy. But the government, especially the Department of Energy, helps all developers.)Layug said the DOE&#x27;s cancellation of several service contracts of developers who failed to fulfill its promise, is good for the industry.“It’s a good sign because lahat po ng mga developers ay mapipilitan gawin ang kanilang obligation sa kontrata, hindi ho kasi pwedeng tulugan,” he said.(It&#x27;s a good sign because all developers will be forced to fulfill their obligation under the contracts. They can&#x27;t sleep on them.)According to Layug, this will ensure that only reliable and serious players are given the chance to construct renewable energy facilities. This will also encourage foreign investors to join the renewable energy bandwagon since imposing strict standards mean that government is serious in achieving its targets, he said.The government aims to increase the share of clean energy in the country&#x27;s power mix to 35 percent by 2030, and to 50 percent by 2050.Meanwhile, the DOE said it remains confident it can catch up on its objectives, despite cancelling 17,000 megawatts worth of service contract, including Leviste&#x27;s 12,000 megawatts.DOE Undersecretary Mylene Capongcol said the government plans to offer these areas to others who are willing and able to build solar energy facilties.Capongcol also said the DOE facilitates with national government agencies in cases where the service contractors encounter difficulties in the completion of the projects.Leviste meanwhlile has denied that he owns a firm facing P24 billion in penalties imposed by the DOE for failure to deliver on energy commitments. - With a report from Vivienne Gulla, ABS-CBN News

An energy industry group has denied a claim by Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste that the Department of Energy is not helping renewable energy players.

An energy industry group has denied a claim by Batangas Rep. Leandro Leviste that the Department of Energy is not helping renewable energy players.