City, PNOC-RC forge ties on waste to energy project

January 13, 2019 Metro BLISTT

The local government and the State-owned Philippine National Oil Company–Renewables Corporation (PNOC-RC) forged a memorandum of understanding for the conduct of a feasibility study on the applicable waste-to-energy technology to help in solving the garbage disposal problems of the Baguio-La Trinidad-Itogon-Sablan-Tuba-Tublay (BLISTT) area.
The memorandum of understanding was signed by Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan and PNOC-RC president and chief executive officer John Arenas during simple rites at the City Mayor’s Office Wednesday.
PNOC-RC is mandated to pursue and implement projects on new, renewable, non-conventional and environmentally-friendly energy sources and systems to ensure the country’s energy self-sufficiency, foster allied activities of national interest for sustained economic growth and for better quality of life.
Both the local government and PNOC-RC agreed to explore cooperative ways on solid waste management through a waste-to-energy project beneficial to the BLISTT local governments and the residents in the said areas.
The agreement is effective for five years with each of the parties bearing its own cost related to the negotiation and preparation for any purpose.
Under the agreement, each party shall remain the sole owner of all industrial or intellectual property rights, technical data, know-how, designs, specifications and the like, generated or acquired before the signing of the document or beyond the scope of the same.
The agreement will serve as a preliminary agreement of the parties, and that the activities being contemplated as well as the performance by the parties of any undertaking pursuant to, or in furtherance of the same, shall be subject to more definitive agreements.
Domogan underscored the agreement is between the local government and a similar government entity with expertise on renewable energy sources, thus it will not be prone to abuse by a private entity, especially in terms of the expenses among other financial issues.
He claimed the PNOC-RC will conduct the feasibility study on putting up the proposed waste-to-energy facility within the 29.11-hectare private property of the Benguet Corporation (BC) in Antamok, Itogon, Benguet ceded to the local government to ascertain the feasibility of the area.
On his part, Arenas, who was the former president and chief executive officer of the John Hay Management Corporation (JHMC), assured the local chief executive the PNOC-RC will do its best to come out with the results of the feasibility study on whether or not the proposed waste-to-energy project in the said site will be feasible for the benefit of the people living in the BLISTT communities, especially in having a state-of-the-art solid waste disposal facility vital in solving the garbage problems of the involved local governments and producing renewable energy that will be able to be instrumental in providing cheap, reliable and quality power to the growing number of residents in the said communities.
Baguio PIO