Jose Rene Almendras
| Jose Rene Almendras | |
|---|---|
Jose Rene Almendras at the World Economic Forum on East Asia in 2010
|
|
|
Secretary of the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs Acting |
|
|
In office March 8, 2016 – June 30, 2016 |
|
| President | Benigno Aquino III |
| Preceded by | Albert del Rosario |
| Succeeded by | Perfecto Yasay, Jr. |
| Cabinet Secretary of the Philippines | |
|
In office November 5, 2012 – March 8, 2016 |
|
| President | Benigno Aquino III |
| Preceded by | Silvestre H. Bello III |
| Succeeded by | Leoncio Evasco Jr. |
| Secretary of the Philippine Department of Energy | |
|
In office June 30, 2010 – November 4, 2012 |
|
| President | Benigno Aquino III |
| Preceded by | Jose Ibazeta (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Carlos Jericho L. Petilla |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
March 12, 1960 Cebu City, Philippines |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Relations | Agnes Magpale (sister) |
| Occupation | Government Official |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Jose Rene Dimataga Almendras (March 12, 1960, Cebu City) is a Filipino businessman and public servant. He served as Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs under the administration of President Benigno Aquino III. Prior to his appointment, Almendras held the position of Cabinet Secretary and Secretary of the Department of Energy.
Almendras was born in Cebu City to Josefino Almendras and Rosita Dimataga. Before being appointed by Benigno Aquino III to the Energy secretary post, Almendras was the president of Manila Water of the Ayala Corporation group. Prior to Ayala, he was treasurer of Aboitiz & Co. and Aboitiz Equity Ventures.
For many years, the Philippines took a short-term approach to addressing its power needs. However, in an interview with the Voices of the Philippines, Almendras said that "energy is never short-term" and implemented the Energy Reform Agenda, a 25-year programme, with energy access the most important theme. ‘Energy access’ is defined as both availability and affordability. He said that he believes in long-term planning and that "knee-jerk reactions can wreak havoc with structures which need to have a long-term focus." He said that the energy reform agenda was necessary because we (the Philippines) cannot afford band-aid solutions, it is important that every action we take today has a long-term strategic view."
His focus is on creating an even playing field, public-private partnerships and an acknowledgement that energy is everyone’s concern. This is based on three key pillars: energy security, optimal energy pricing and sustainable energy planning.
Almendras has launched the Philippine Energy Contracting Round 4, as well as coal exploration contracts.
The Philippines has a full renewable-energy potential that is estimated at 247,000-MW, based on the United States Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Laboratory estimates. To achieve this goal, on December 2, 2010, Almendras said the Department of Energy draft for the Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) will be completed by the second quarter of 2011, and the National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) will submit its proposed Feed-in Tariff Rates also in the second quarter as well as the green-energy option program--all of which affect renewable energy development into the country. Almendras endeavored to achieve a total of 8,000-megawatts (MW) of generating capacity by 2030 and encouraged developers to put these renewable energy capacity up. But in the near term, he also asked them to work to set up, between 2015 and 2016, at least 2,000-3,000 MW of generating capacity in renewable energy.
...
Wikipedia