Davide: Oil and Gas Supply in Alegria a Welcome Development

Gov. Hilario P. Davide III is pleased with the acknowledgment of the Department of Energy that crude oil is viable in Alegria town.

“Nalipay ko sa DOE statement nga commercially viable ang inyong oil dinhi,” said Davide in his speech during the inauguration of the P16.5 million new Alegria Municipal hall last week.

Earlier this month, DOE Secretary Alfonso Cusi stated that the oil field in Barangay Montpeller in Alegria has commercial quantities of natural gas and oil resources.

The gas and oil, which reportedly can last 19 years, can support a 60-MW power with an estimated 27.93 million barrels of oil and 9.42 billion cubic feet of natural gas, said Cusi.

Engr. Dennis Guardiario, site engineer for the East Asia drilling contractor, said the third, fourth and fifth well in Alegria may produce 300 to 400 barrels of crude oil daily. The sixth well is still being tested.

DOE-7 regional director Saul Gonzales said that crude oil and gas in commercial quantity will spur economic growth in Alegria and the whole Cebu province, even in the country.

Thankful for their town’s new municipal hall, Alegria Mayor Verna Magallon thanked Davide and the Capitol for funding its construction. She also expressed gratitude to 7th district Representative Peter John Calderon for financing other projects in the municipality, including their P30 million worth sea wall and P10 million worth of roads in Barangay Valencia and Legaspi.

Municipal Planning and Development Officer (MPDO) Engr. Tito Cavalida said construction of the new building started in 2016. The new municipal hall is adjacent to the existing one and shall hold the mayor’s office and session hall.

Magallon also thanked Davide for pushing for the P95.6 million Philippine Rural Development Program (PRDP) of the Department of Agriculture, which funded the town’s water system, along with the counterpart of the Capitol.

Alegria’s Potable Water System (PWS) is the first in the province under the PRDP that benefits majority of the residents.

Davide led the inauguration of the PWS in July last year. Supplying clean, potable water in the countryside is part of Davide’s six key development agenda under countryside development, and health and social services.

In his speech to Alegria residents, Davide also announced the opening of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City, the first among Cebu government hospitals, which is strategically located to serve patients in the southwest and southeast part of the province, including Alegria. (Oscar Pineda)

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