MANILA — Diplomats from the Philippines and China have reopened formal discussions on joint oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea, Philippine foreign-affairs officials told reporters Monday, marking the first publicly disclosed meeting on the subject since talks were suspended in 2022.
According to two senior Philippine officials with direct knowledge of the meeting, an inter-agency team led by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) hosted a Chinese delegation at the DFA headquarters in Pasay City to discuss “possible parameters” for cooperation in areas lying inside the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The officials requested anonymity because the agenda has not been made public.
The revival of negotiations follows President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s announcement last month that Manila was willing to explore “creative solutions” to tap untapped hydrocarbon reserves off Palawan as the country’s main domestic gas field, Malampaya, nears depletion. Marcos terminated the previous negotiating round in June 2022, saying proposed terms were incompatible with the Philippine Constitution, which bars foreign ownership of natural resources inside the EEZ.
Chinese Embassy spokesperson Zhang Xiliang confirmed that “technical teams from both sides have exchanged views on advancing mutually beneficial energy cooperation” and called the session “constructive.” He added that Beijing hopes talks will “not be disrupted by forces that do not wish for regional stability,” an apparent reference to the United States, which has urged Manila to enforce a 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated Beijing’s expansive maritime claims.
Under a 2018 Memorandum of Understanding signed by then-president Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the two countries aimed to craft a legally binding framework for joint exploration that would skirt questions of sovereignty. Progress stalled after Philippine negotiators insisted that any deal recognize Manila’s sovereign rights—an outcome Beijing has resisted.
Energy analysts say undiscovered reserves around Reed Bank could hold as much as 4.5 trillion cubic feet of gas, enough to power Luzon’s grids for two decades. “Without new supply, the Philippines faces a looming energy crunch by 2027,” said Alvin Manalastas, senior analyst at Manila-based think tank StratEnergy.
Still, nationalist lawmakers remain wary. “Engaging China before it complies with the arbitral ruling risks legitimizing its illegal occupation of our waters,” Senator Risa Hontiveros said in a statement.
The two sides agreed to convene again in the second quarter to tackle legal modalities, sources said. Whether they can reconcile constitutional constraints with Beijing’s political red lines will determine if Philippine consumers see cheaper, domestically sourced gas—or if the region’s flashpoint remains hostage to geopolitics.