September 20, 2025 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Energy (DOE) is planning to launch an open bidding for new renewable energy (RE) contracts, targeting untapped geothermal, wind and hydropower resources.
The DOE is also set to create a committee that will review and evaluate the qualifications of bidders under the open and competitive selection process (OCSP) for new service contracts.
For the fifth OCSP round, the DOE has identified 11 predetermined areas across the country where new RE projects may be developed, according to the preliminary terms of reference issued yesterday.
The bulk or seven of the identified areas offer a combined hydropower potential of 37.4 megawatts, while two others hold up to 68 megawatts of untapped geothermal capacity.
The remaining two sites have been designated for wind contracts, but the DOE has yet to determine their resource potential.
According to the DOE, direct applications for new RE contracts are not allowed in these areas unless developers plan to build a different type of technology than what the site is meant for.
The OCSP is a method of awarding RE service contracts through a transparent and competitive bidding process to facilitate the exploration, development and utilization of the country’s clean energy resources.
This is a different scheme from the green energy auction program, where the government awards winning bidders with long-term contracts to deliver electricity at agreed tariffs.
To ensure compliance with OCSP guidelines, the DOE intends to establish a review and evaluation committee (REC) for the awarding of RE service contracts.
The DOE undersecretary supervising the Renewable Energy Management Bureau (REMB) is set to chair the committee, with the assistant secretary serving as vice-chairperson.
The REC members, meanwhile, consist of the directors of REMB, legal services, financial services and information and technology management.
Among the REC’s duties and responsibilities is to examine the completeness of bidders’ applications to participate in the OCSP, as well as their legal, technical and financial qualifications.
The DOE said RE contracts under the OCSP are open to both Philippine and foreign firms, except for geothermal, which is subject to ownership restrictions.
“The RE applicant for the geothermal service contract must be a Filipino or, if a corporation, must be a Filipino corporation with at least 60 percent of its capitalization owned and controlled by Filipinos,” a DOE draft circular states.
In 2022, the government lifted the foreign ownership limits in the RE sector, which was previously subject to a 40-percent cap. The move, however, only covers solar, wind, biomass, ocean or tidal energy.
