Malampaya continues to power Luzon amid Lockdown

While the country copes with the impacts of the spread of COVID-19, the Malampaya deep-water gas-to-power project (Malampaya) continues to supply up to 40% of the power needs of Luzon in order to sustain the operations of hospitals and vital facilities says Shell Philippines Exploration B.V (SPEX), operator of Malampaya.

The enhanced community quarantine in Luzon and many other areas poses challenges to the mobility of the workforce, but SPEX worked closely with the Department of Energy to enable critical personnel to ferry to the offshore platform, as well as the needed materials and supplies to safely operate and maintain the facility.

“We’ve taken measures to ensure that we can keep the offshore platform and the onshore gas plant staffed even with the current, difficult circumstances,” said Don Paulino, SPEX Managing Director and General Manager. ”Our commitment to the country remains, our operations will work round-the-clock to produce Malampaya natural gas and power up to 40% of Luzon’s electricity.”

As Shell’s engineers, operators, and maintenance crew are still being regularly rotated and flown offshore to the platform, stringent measures are in place to look after the health and well-being of our workforce, such as screening of workers and implementing specific COVID-19 protocols for hygiene and social distancing measures offshore, as well as medical evacuation.

According to Shell companies in the Philippines Chairman Cesar Romero, “We need power to keep hospitals running; sustain the operations of pharmacies, banks, groceries, and other vital facilities; enable internet services that keep us connected; and to light our households. Now, more than ever, energy is needed to power our nation.

The Malampaya offshore platform and onshore gas plant are key installations to the nation’s energy security as it is the only local producer of indigenous natural gas. A joint undertaking of the Philippine national government and the private sector, the upstream extraction operation requires continuous manning all-year-round. 

“We will continue to power the nation,” said Romero. “As we constantly navigate the challenges of the ongoing enhanced community quarantine, patuloy ninyong kasama ang Shell sa bawa’t biyahe ng buhay.”