{
  "id": 7591384,
  "title": "Our coal dilemma",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/15/our-coal-dilemma",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-15T16:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Philippine Star Business",
    "slug": "philippine-star-business",
    "url": "https://www.philstar.com/business/2026/09/16/2556515/our-coal-dilemma"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Our country faces a critical power supply issue that causes both investors to withdraw and locals to suffer. Advocates favor solar energy, touting its environmental benefits and lack of geopolitical risks. However, solar power is unreliable as a baseload supply due to its dependence on weather conditions and capacity factor. The department of energy (DOE) estimates that installing an additional four to five times more solar capacity with large-scale storage may be necessary. Only a small percentage of utility-scale solar installations in the Philippines currently have battery backup. Dependable baseload power plants, such as coal, natural gas, nuclear, geothermal, and hydro, are essential to support power grids. Geothermal and hydro sources are limited, with geothermal capacity standing at 2,057 MW and hydro reliant on rainy seasons and irrigation. The DOE has banned new coal plants and identified idle coal power capacity totaling three to five gigawatts that was previously exempt from a 2020 moratorium but has yet to commence. Climate activists demand the filling of the five-GW gap with renewable energy sources, yet these alternatives cannot match the continuous power output required for heavy manufacturing and grid stability. Massive solar farms to fill the power gap could lead to land-use problems and negatively impact agriculture. Despite these challenges, constructing new coal power plants could provide the necessary baseload power, with modern technologies reducing pollution. The economic consequences of not addressing the power supply shortage are severe, potentially suppressing GDP growth and hindering poverty alleviation efforts.",
  "summary": "We have a serious power supply problem that makes potential investors flee.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}