(UPDATE) CHINA looks forward to continuing talks with the Philippine government under the administration of President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. on the joint oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea, a Foreign Ministry official said. The Philippines claims parts of the South China Sea within its exclusive economic zone and calls it the West Philippine Sea. After an extensive exploration program, the Philippines finds the Nido oil field off the coast of Palawan Island, marking the first oil discovery in the Northwest Palawan Basin. The discovery comes four years after the government passed the Oil Exploration and Development Act of 1972, which provides the legal basis for exploring and developing petroleum resources as Manila pushes for energy independence. In 2012, the International Monetary Fund noted that the Philippines' petroleum industry may have "significant potential" in the South China Sea, which is adjacent to the Northwest Palawan Basin.

Source: Manila Times June 26, 2022 02:36 UTC