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| Richard B. Tantoco, EDC president and chief operating officer |
The government can support the growth of the country’s geothermal industry by helping with the upfront risk that goes with the development of the indigenous energy resource, the president of Energy Development Corp. (EDC) said.
“Globally, geothermal has always grown in government’s hands — whether it’s Costa Rica, Mexico… because government has unlimited balance sheet,” Richard B. Tantoco, EDC president and chief operating officer, told reporters.
“So if government could do anything to help, not just us but any of the 13 players that have concession areas, it’s to help with that upfront risk,” he added.
Mr. Tantoco made the statement in response to a request for comment on the country’s standing in global geothermal power generation, which has slipped a notch lower this year after being overtaken by Indonesia in the second spot. The US remains the world’s biggest.
“FiT (feed-in-tariff) will always help because you have a PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) with the government. But really, if you look at geothermal — historically and worldwide — the biggest issue… is in the upfront risk,” he said.
