On 01 April 2024, in Manila, Philippines, a Japanese mission led by Mr. Maeda Tadashi, Special Advisor to the Cabinet, together with the officials of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), and Japanese private sector executives held a meeting with the Philippine Secretary of Energy Raphael P.M. Lotilla.

In the inaugural dialogue, both countries acknowledged the importance of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) Japan-Philippines High-Level Coordination Dialogue as a framework under which the Japanese public and private sectors and the government of the Philippines, led by the Department of Energy to discuss the challenges and solutions to advance efforts for decarbonization by developing specific projects and encouraging all parties with appropriate assistance.  These include the utilization of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a transition fuel, renewable energy development, building resilient energy infrastructure and introduction of technologies that will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The Philippines is the third partner country, after Viet Nam and Indonesia, to have agreed to establish a framework for holding local discussions between the Japanese public and private sectors, including Japanese companies, and the local government, since the launch of the AZEC framework at the Ministerial Meeting in March 2023.

Projects will be developed through the AZEC Japan-Philippines Project Development Platform which seeks collaborative projects based on the Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) signed between JBIC and the Philippine private companies such as the Aboitiz Power Corporation, Metro Pacific Investment Corporation and San Miguel Corporation.

Going forward, the Philippines will closely work with Japan to contribute to decarbonization in Asia through policy harmonization and support, together with other AZEC partner countries. ###