Pagtatayo ng ‘fossil gas’ tinutulan ng environmental and energy advocacy groups

“Fossil gas will not make our world better!”

Ito ang ipinahayag ng consumers, environmental and energy advocacy groups, na sinasabing planong itayo umano ng San Miguel Corporation (SMC) sa ginanap na Annual Stockholders meeting nitong MIyerkules.

Dahil dito ay lumusob ang grupong Power for People Coalition (P4P) at Protect VIP sa SMC headquarters na may dalang San Miguel beer cans na kinortehan ng ‘fossil gas plant’ upang ihayag na ang SMC ay hindi lamang ‘iconic’ sa kanilang beer, kundi sila rin ang biggest developer ng fossil gas sa Pilipinas at Southeast Asia na may higit 14 GW new fossil gas kapasidad na kanilang iminumungkahi.

“Building dependence on fossil gas means dependence on imported fuels, exposure to volatile power supply and prices, leaving consumers to the constant threat of rising electricity rates, and vulnerability to geopolitical shocks globally – on top of an already catastrophic climate crisis triggered by fossil fuels. This is the kind of future that SMC is locking us in,” pahayag ni Gerry Arances, Convenor ng P4P.

Para sa P4P, Protect VIP, at mga kaalyadong grupo, ang fossil gas ay hindi rin mahusay gaya ng coal kung ang pag- uusapan ay ang affordability, sustainability, o promotion of national energy security.

“As SMC’s stockholders meet today, we wonder if the hardships they bring with their fossil gas projects ever figure in their discussions – or if SMC’s rising revenues are all that matter. As one of the largest conglomerates in the Philippines, SMC has the ability to influence the quality of life of Filipinos. They should be held accountable if they negatively use it to promote detrimental and costly energy,” dagdag ni Arances.

Binansagan bilang ‘clean’ na alternatibo sa coal, ang fossil gas at ang kaniyang supercooled form na liquefied natural gas (LNG) ay ipinagmamalaki bilang ‘transition’ fuel sa gitna ng mga panawagang palitan ng renewable energy dahil sa global climate targets.

“Fossil gas technologies would operate for a minimum number of 25-35 years, effectively stalling the actual development of genuine renewable energy infrastructures in Negros Occidental and other islands, taking the Philippines on a detour away from a real clean energy transition amidst worsening climate impacts,” pahayag naman ni Bianca Montilla ng Youth for Climate Hope (Y4CH) ng Negros Occidental, kung saan ay plano ng SMC na magtayo ng 300 MW LNG plant.

Kabilang sa mga grupong tumututol sa fossil gas ay ang ECOSILAK – Youth for VIP, na kabilang sa grupong Protect Verde Island Passage (Protect VIP) network, PALAG Na! sa Ozamiz at Davao City sa Mindanao, Konsyumer Negros, Youth for Climate Hope sa Negros Occidental, SM-ZOTO sa Navotas, Freedom from Debt Coalition sa Tabango, Leyte, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, KPML, Sanlakas, at Partido Lakas ng Masa sa Cebu.