Philippines to resume South China Sea oil exploration after Duterte lifts moratorium

President Rodrigo Duterte approved the energy department’s request to lift the 2014 ban imposed because of escalating territorial tensions with China

The country said it expects China to respect its unilateral decision to resume exploration, development and production to ensure power supply

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President Rodrigo Duterte approved the lifting of the ban, which was done ‘in good faith and with full regard of the ongoing negotiations between the Philippines and China’, the energy secretary said. Photo: Reuters

Published: 3:19pm, 16 Oct 2020Updated: 11:14pm, 16 Oct 2020

The Philippines’ energy minister said on Friday that the government’s move to lift a moratorium on oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea was a unilateral decision that China is expected to respect.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, in a virtual media briefing, also said he did not expect the move to affect a memorandum of understanding between the two countries on a possible joint development in the disputed waters as well as joint venture talks among exploration companies.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday approved the lifting of the ban, which was imposed six years ago because of escalating territorial tensions with China.

Cusi said companies awarded contracts to explore for oil and gas in three sprawling areas off the western Philippines have been asked to resume their search operations, including in a potentially oil- and gas-rich region called Reed Bank.

Duterte has nurtured closer ties with Beijing since taking office in 2016 and put the territorial rift on the back burner in his initial years in power to avoid offending China.