Drilling operations under Phase 4 of the Malampaya gas-to-power project are set to begin soon as the drillship is scheduled to arrive at its site off northwest Palawan by May 30.

Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Alessandro Sales said in a press briefing in Taguig City Thursday that the drillship Noble Viking and three other support vessels are currently at the port in Labuan, Malaysia for final inspections and loading of materials.

The drillship is set to arrive at the northwest Palawan site by May 30, with drilling of three wells—two for production and one for exploration—to follow.

Sales said the drilling would take around 150 days, which is expected to conclude by October this year.

If successful, the output from the new wells could extend Malampaya’s operations by 2034, up from the current projection of 2029.

“The actual hookup and pipelining to connect the two new wells to the existing production facilities will be undertaken immediately after, to begin in the last quarter of this year,” Sales added.

Malampaya currently supplies 1.2 to 1.3 gigawatts (GW) of electricity, below its former output due to declining reserves.

The energy department hopes to boost the Malampaya natural gas production to 1.5 to 1.7 GW.

“The third well being drilled is an exploration well, and hopefully with the good results on the exploration well called the ‘Bagong Pag-asa’, this will provide additional volumes for the field to be produced,” Sales said.

Meanwhile, imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) is being used to fill the shortfall through two LNG terminals in Batangas.

The Marcos administration considers natural gas as a vital strategy to long-term energy transition, making it a transition fuel from coal to renewable energy.

In 2023, natural gas accounted for 22 percent of power generation.

“Right now, the country's total primary energy supply, more than half, or 54 percent, is imported,” DOE Secretary Raphael Lotilla said.

Lotilla noted that coal makes up 63 percent of the Philippines’ power generation, with 83 percent of coal supply being imported — 99.5 percent of which came from Indonesia.

“So, the diversification of fuels, including renewable energy and natural gas, are important elements in this (energy transition). And of course, the remaining movement to the potential for future contributions even of nuclear power,” the energy chief said.

Aside from Malampaya, the DOE is ramping up exploration activities in other parts of the country, including the East Palawan and Sulu Sea basins, where up to five service contracts are in various stages of award.