A Mapua University educator said the trigger for country’s present energy woes was the Middle East conflict, but that the root cause was structural in nature.
Professor Aldrin Calderon, dean of Mechanical, Manufacturing, and Energy Engineering at Mapua University explained that over-reliance on a narrow, import-dependent fuel mix, and insufficient diversification over decades was the real culprit.
“The immediate trigger was the conflict-induced disruption of global oil supply, but the root cause is structural: over-reliance on import dependent fuel mix, and insufficient diversification,” Calderon said.
Ninety-eight percent of the country’s energy supply are imported and mostly sourced from the Middle East, thus exposing it to significant risks from geopolitical disruptions.
Likewise, the long-standing challenges include limited domestic energy supply buffers, a power sector still dominated by imported coal, oil and gas, and slow transition to resilient, diversified, and renewable energy systems.
Other indicators of the structural failure were the under developed domestic renewable and storage sector, grid constraints that hinder the seamless integration of renewable energy, and delayed infrastructure modernization, which slowed the electric vehicle (EV) roadmap.
However, the educator commended the administration’s whole-of-government response through the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT) framework, which prioritized fuel subsidies, buffer stock procurement, conservation mandates, and fast-tracked imports.
He suggests how various sectors could soften the impact by shifting to energy-efficient retrofits and installing rooftop solar power systems as well as streamline logistics and fleet utilization.
Households could switch to energy-saving appliances or shift their energy usage to non-peak hours to support demand-side management. They may opt for public transportation and join decentralized energy solutions. At the same time, the public sector can accelerate approvals for renewables through its web-based Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop (EVOSS) system, strengthen energy efficiency enforcement in offices, and de-risk storage and micro-grid investments.
Calderon said that Mapua’s Energy Engineering (EE) classes have already embedded such scenarios into capstone projects, laboratory work, and applied research so students can model and propose solutions that are immediately and realistically implementable.
“At Mapua, this reality reinforces why Energy Engineering education must go beyond theory. We train students to understand energy security as an engineering, economic, and policy problem, emphasizing systems thinking, resilience design, and indigenous energy solutions aligned with the Philippine Energy Plan (PEP) 2023-2050,” he added.
The educator said projects evolve into pilot projects and technology demonstrations, or are further developed in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), local government units, and various industries. When the need arises, the university assumes policy advisory roles to bridge the gap between its academic expertise and innovations and national impact.
By supplying skilled engineers, data, and applied research, universities like Mapua help advance the structural transformation needed to gain energy security.
Calderon summarized how the current crisis is not just a warning but a calling. He stressed that energy engineering today is nation-building.
If you’re ready to answer the call to nation building as an Energy Engineer, visit www.mapua.edu.ph and begin your journey to a world-class, future-focused education today.
