Looking to China: President Rodrigo Duterte announced the executive order in May
Manila opens the door to Chinese E&P
An executive order has reduced the constraints on Philippines’ state oil company working with third parties on oil and gas deals
An executive order from Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte that relaxed the rules on oil and gas exploration should make it easier for the government to cement its recent outreach to China, as it opens exploration blocks in a bid to reverse a precipitous decline in production. Executive Order 80, issued in late May, reverses a previous ruling from 2006 that prevented the Philippine National Oil Company Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC) from directly farming out its acreage. From now on, third parties can participate in service contracts awarded by the government to PNOC-EC, the upstream arm of state-owned Philippine National Oil Company, without the need for public bidding.PNOC-EC has bee
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
