HONG KONG (Reuters Thu Nov 5, 2009) - The Philippine government aims to approve contracts to explore and develop the country’s massive geothermal energy resources, which could attract more than $2.5 billion in private investment, an official said.

Philippine power producer Energy Development Corp and Envent, a unit of Geysir Green Energy, one of Iceland’s biggest geothermal energy companies, were among groups vying for contracts to tap the country’s geothermal resources, he said.

Geothermal power accounted for 17 percent of the country’s total power mix at the end of 2008, with installed capacity close to 2,000 megawatts, energy department data showed.

The government was issuing tenders for the development of 10 geothermal sites and negotiating nine more deals directly with various companies, Oanes said. Combined, the deals could harness more than 620 megawatts of geothermal energy.

ZED COMMENT: To re-charge electric car batteries, or make hydrogen by electrolysis for ZED powered vehicles, an efficient, environmentally benign method of making electricity is needed. Alternate sources such as wind farms are expensive, a danger to birds, visually displeasing, require extraordinary service when exposed to a salt water environment, and only work intermittently when the wind blows. Coal is a carbon fuel and therefore will always produce carbon pollution when burned to produce electricity. The same can be said for natural gas power production. The ONLY electrical power production which is inexpensive to maintain, requires no fuel and runs 24/7 is geothermal.  ZED supports geothermal power production as the ultimate environmentally friendly solution, and an integrated part of the ZED engine paradigm change in transportation. The United States is the largest producer of geothermal power in the world.