The Philippine Department of Energy (DoE) will launch the first call for proposals for a PHP 10.07bn (USD 161.1m) geothermal de-risking fund in Q4 2026, a senior government official told NPM.

The tender will be held annually from end-2026 as the government targets to start disbursing the funds by 2028, DoE Undersecretary Rowena Cristina L. Guevara said in an email.

Manila-headquartered Asian Development Bank (ADB) is said to be working out the details of engaging technical experts to assess the proposals for the Philippine Geothermal Resource De-Risking Facility (PGRDF).

The initiative aims to mitigate the risk associated with the capital-intensive nature of geothermal projects, including providing loans to finance 50% of total exploration drilling cost. If exploration is unsuccessful and no geothermal resource is confirmed for the development stage, the loan is converted to grant, ADB said in its circular.

The Manila-based multilateral will provide the funding while state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines will act as the facility administrator and manager.

“ADB is currently finalising the process. The call for peer reviewers is expected to open early Q4 2026,” Guevara said.

The official told local media last week that the government had already identified 12 potential applicants which include firms tied to foreign developers, although she refused to disclose their names. She added that 5 other firms could qualify in case the others back out.

When asked about the identity of the candidates, Guevara told NPM: “Funding will be open to all geothermal developers holding geothermal service contracts in the pre-development stage. At present, most prospective participants are local geothermal developers.”

The Philippines has over 740 MW of potential geothermal capacity based on awarded service contracts as of March 2026, government data shows. Among the largest projects in pre-development phase are:

• Aragorn Power and Energy Corp’s 120 MW Kalinga Geothermal Project
• Energy Development Corp’s (EDC) 119 MW Amacan Geothermal Project
• Pan-Pacific Power’s 86 MW Baua-Sikaw Geothermal Project

EDC confirmed in July that it had received a $5 billion unsolicited takeover offer from Indonesian conglomerate Barito Group. The First Gen-backed developer is also expanding its presence in Indonesia with plans to invest up to USD 80 million for exploration and drilling activities.