Climate group: BBM, 'stay true' to climate agenda

A GROUP of climate reality leaders called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., also popularly known as BBM, to stay true to his administration's climate agenda, which focused primarily on renewable energy (RE) after he delivered his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 22.

In a statement on their website after the SONA, the Climate Reality Project Philippines said that while it «holds promise» for underserved communities, Marcos' call for a unified Philippine grid fell short of addressing the country's broader energy woes.

As Marcos highlighted his focus on RE in his climate agenda, the group urged him to accelerate its growth.

«As a domestic resource, renewable energy shields the country from global market price fluctuations, making electricity more affordable for Filipinos. The government needs to further unlock the country's huge potential for renewable energy,» they stated.

The group pointed out that RE's «compelling» benefits are already evident in the country. «Participants in the government's Green Energy Option Program who have switched to 100 percent renewable power sources are experiencing substantial cost reductions of 10 to 40 percent on their electricity bills,» it added.

The climate organization also called on the President to phase out coal and fossil gas, saying that nuclear power plants, which take too long to build and do not lower power rates, will «not see the light of day in this administration.»

They also maintained «fossil fuels and nuclear energy are not viable long-term solutions for the Philippines. Coal, an expensive import, and fossil gas, reliant on foreign supply, expose us to price volatility.»

Climate Reality Project Philippines also wanted Marcos to modernize the country's grid to a decentralized grid and a distributed energy system.

«Our current centralized, baseload-oriented system is ill-equipped to handle fluctuating energy demands. The country needs to transition toward a distributed and decentralized energy system where variable renewable energy capacity can supplement our main interconnected grid,» explained the climate group.

The group also suggested «streamlined permitting processes, sustainable