Article 79p. 79

NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS STATUTES and IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS

No officer, external auditor, accountant, or legal counsel

of any private company or enterprise primarily engaged

in the energy industry shall be eligible for appointment

as Secretary within two (2) years from his retirement,

resignation, or separation therefrom.

The Secretary shall have the following functions:

(a) Establish policies and standards for the effective,

efficient and economical operation of the Department in

accordance with the programs of the Government;

(b)

Exercise

direct

supervision

and control over all

functions and activities of the Department, as well as all

its officers and personnel;

(c) Devise a program of international information on the

geological and contractual conditions obtaining in the

Philippines

for

oil

and

gas exploration in order to

advance the industry;

(d) Create regional offices and such other service units

and divisions as may be necessary;

(e) Create regional or separate grids as may be necessary

or beneficial; and

(f) Perform such other functions as may be necessary or

proper to attain the objectives of this Act.

The Secretary shall be an ex officio member of the Board

of the National Economic and Development Authority

(NEDA). He shall also be a member of the NEDA’s

Committee

on

Infrastructure

(INFRACOM)

and

the

Investment Coordinating Council (ICC). For this purpose,

the provisions of Executive Order No. 292, otherwise

known as the Administrative Code of 1987, relative to the

creation

and

organization

of

the

NEDA

and

its

component agencies and offices are hereby modified

accordingly.

The Secretary shall also be a member of the body

authorized

to

formulate,

prescribe,

or

amend

the

necessary guidelines for the financing, construction,

operation, and maintenance of infrastructure projects by

the

private

sector,

under

Republic

Act

No.

6957,

otherwise known as the Build-Operate-Transfer Law.

SECTION 9. The Undersecretaries. — The Secretary shall

be assisted by three (3) Undersecretaries who shall be

appointed by the President upon the recommendation

of

the

Secretary.

They

shall

have

the powers and

functions as provided for in Section 10, Chapter 2, Book

IV of the Administrative Code of 1987.

The Offices of the Undersecretaries shall consist of the

Undersecretaries and their respective immediate staff.

SECTION 10. Assistant Secretaries. — The Secretary shall

also be assisted by three (3) Assistant Secretaries, one (1)

for operations, one (1) for policy and programs, and

another

for

administrative

services.

The

Assistant

Secretaries shall be appointed by the President upon the

recommendation of the Secretary.

SECTION

11.

Qualifications.

—

No

person

shall

be

appointed

Secretary,

Undersecretary,

or

Assistant

Secretary of the Department unless he is a citizen and

resident of the Philippines, of good moral character, and

of proven competence in any of the following fields: (a)

energy or utility economics; (b) public administration; (c)

physical or engineering sciences; (d) management; or (e)

law.

SECTION 12. Bureaus and Services. — Subject to the

power

of

the

Secretary,

with

the

approval

of

the

President, to reorganize, restructure, and redefine the

functions of the bureaus and services for the effective

discharge

of

the

powers

and

functions

of

the

Department under this Act, the Department shall have

the following bureaus and services: Energy Resource

Development Bureau; Energy Utilization Management

Bureau; Energy Industry Administration Bureau; Energy

Planning and Monitoring Bureau; and Administrative

Support Services.

The

bureaus

and

services

shall have the following

powers and functions:

(a) Energy Resource Development Bureau — (1) Assist in

the

formulation

and

implementation

of

policies

to

develop

and

increase the domestic supply of local

energy resources like fossil fuels, nuclear fuels, and

geothermal resources;

(2) Assist in the formulation of sectoral programs and

plans

relative

to the exploration, development, and

extraction of local energy resources and implement,

monitor, and regularly review said programs;

(3) Conduct energy research and studies in support of

the aforementioned activities;

(4) Provide consultative training and advisory services to

practitioners and institutions in the areas of regulated

activities; and

(5) Assist in the formulation of financial and fiscal

policies, rules, guidelines, and requirements relative to

the operations of service contractors and implement and

enforce said policies.

(b) Energy Utilization Management Bureau — (1) Assist in

the formulation and implementation of policies for the

efficient

and

economical transformation, conversion,

processing,

refining,

marketing,

distribution,

transportation, and storage of petroleum, coal, natural

gas, geothermal, and other nonconventional energy

resources such as wind, solar, biomass, and others; and

ensure their efficient and judicious utilization;

(2) Monitor sectoral energy consumption and conduct

energy audits, technical training, energy management

advisory services, and technology application projects on

efficient energy utilization;

(3) Develop, promote, and commercialize applications of

biomass, solar, small hydro, wind, wood, and charcoal

and other nonconventional energy systems including

new and more efficient and economical transformation,

conversion, processing, refining, marketing, distribution,

transportation,

and

storage

technologies

for

conventional energy resources;

(4) Assist in the formulation of an integrated rural energy

program

to

effectively

address

the

needs

of

rural

development

and

environmental

programs

and

implement, monitor, and regularly review said program;

(5) Assist in the formulation of an operational plan for the

allocation of oil, fuel, and energy sources in the event of

the declaration of critically low-energy supply provided

for in Section 25 of this Act;

(6)

Provide

information

on

energy

technology

and

develop

middle-and

long-term

energy

technology

development

strategies

in

cooperation

with

the

Department of Science and Technology;

(7) Monitor the implementation of energy projects in

coordination with the Department of Environment and

Natural Resources to ensure compliance with prescribed

environmental standards;

© 2018 Compiled by RGL

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