Manila: The Supreme Court (SC) en banc has upheld a 2017 Malaca±ang directive creating an office to fast-track energy projects of national significance (EPNS). In a news release on Tuesday, the SC said it dismissed a petition filed by several citizen groups asking it to stop the implementation of Executive Order (EO) No. 30 through an Environmental Protection Order.

According to Philippine News Agency, EO 30 establishes minimum guidelines to streamline and shorten the process of approving EPNS. These include a presumption of prior approvals, which requires agencies to start processing permit applications right away, even if other permits are still pending with other agencies; a 30-day deadline to act on complete applications; and automatic approval if no action is taken within the deadline.

Petitioners claimed that EO 30 goes beyond the President's authority, violates the citizens' right to a healthy environment, bypasses key environmental requirements like the Environmental Compliance Certificate, sets unrealistic deadlines for complex energy projects (some of which typically take over 1,000 days to process), and prioritizes speed over quality, reliability, and affordability of power.

In rejecting the petitioners' arguments, the SC reiterated that the President has the power to streamline government processes as long as they follow existing laws. It said EO 30 also supports national energy development goals outlined in the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 and the Department of Energy (DOE) Act of 1992.

The SC upheld the guidelines under EO 30, which only set minimum standards to help guide agencies, which can be adjusted to follow specific laws or protect the public. 'The presumption of prior approval means permits can be processed at the same time, not skipped altogether. The 30-day timeframe, on the other hand, is even more flexible than the deadlines under other laws like the DOE Act and the Ease of Doing Business Act, which also subsequently adopted the automatic approval mechanism,' the SC said.