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DOE STATEMENT
19 September 2026
The Department of Energy (DOE) has terminated the 2026 Coal Bid Round covering three predetermined areas to reassess the parameters for awarding Coal Operating Contracts (COCs), ensuring that any future award reflects the value of these indigenous energy resources and delivers clear benefits to the State and Filipino consumers.
Based on existing data, there are confirmed mineable coal reserves of commercial quantity within the offered areas and as such, are immediately ripe for direct development and production. With substantially reduced geological uncertainty, these areas represent valuable State assets whose award should secure economic returns commensurate with their established resource potential for the benefit of the Filipino people.
The DOE maintains that the development and production of these resources must serve the national interest. Any COC for development and production should provide clear and measurable economic returns to the government while supporting domestic energy requirements, strengthening energy security, and delivering tangible benefits to Filipino consumers.
The reassessment also considers concerns raised by stakeholders during the pre-submission conferences and recent developments affecting Semirara Island. Ongoing water seepage may affect the volume of extractable coal reserves, while the legal dispute involving the current operator and the DOE over coal operation assets creates uncertainties that could affect prospective bidders' operational plans and bidding strategies.
Under Article XII, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution, natural resources are owned by the State. Consistent with this principle, the government may reassess or terminate a competitive bidding process when the existing parameters are no longer sufficient to protect State assets and advance the national interest. The termination of the current bid round gives the DOE the opportunity to strengthen the evaluation framework before these resources are offered again.
The DOE will recalibrate the bidding parameters toward a fair, transparent, and comprehensive evaluation framework that gives greater weight to clear, measurable, and enforceable economic benefits. These include appropriate government revenues, commitments for domestic utilization which will lower electricity costs for Filipino consumers, and other benefits commensurate with the value and characteristics of the resources being awarded.
The DOE is also working with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources on a policy framework for the award of service and operating contracts involving natural resources to ensure that future contracts advance the national interest and secure appropriate economic returns and enforceable benefits for the State.
The termination of the current bid round does not signal a retreat from the responsible development of indigenous energy resources. Rather, it allows the government to establish stronger parameters before the areas are offered again, ensuring that the development of the country's resources contributes to long-term energy security and creates tangible value for the Filipino people. ###