Quarterly Performance Report YEAR 2 Q3 (April– June 2016)

The program's main objective is to achieve environmentally-sound energy development. With funding support from the US Government, through USAID, EPDP is expected to develop a research initiative to guide energy sector policy- and decision-making, strengthen the enabling environment for national frameworks for climate change mitigation and low-emission development, support energy-related academic activities at tertiary education institutions, and inform private sector business strategies for cost-effective, sustainable, and broad-based growth. EPDP's approach to attaining its objective involves four key initiatives: providing the technical foundation for policy development, capacity building, and communications interventions through an energy research program; providing policy development advisory services to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and Department of Energy (DOE); supporting capacity building activities for NEDA, DOE, and their attached agencies, as well as other stakeholders; and informing private sector business strategies for cost-effective, sustainable, and broad-based growth. In the third quarter of Fiscal Year 2 (FY2), EPDP completed several research studies, providing the new Philippine Administration with access to analyses and evidence on pressing energy issues in the country. These studies were complemented by two-pager policy briefs, which could potentially influence the directions and priorities of the new Administration. A new set of research priorities was also developed, with the top three topics being fuel mix, pricing, and market designs. EPDP continued to support government partners through just-in-time technical advisories, including a study on the impact of higher-blended biodiesel on the Philippine coconut industry. The program also researched and analyzed the various governance structures of Independent Market Operators (IMOs) in other countries' wholesale electricity markets, which will facilitate the Department of Energy's process of defining a suitable structure for the IMO of the wholesale electricity spot market in the Philippines. In pursuit of EPDP's mandate to help build local capacity in the energy sector, a mid-level training course in econometrics was offered to hone the knowledge and skills of 36 technical employees from seven government agencies. EPDP also supported 86 students who were refining their research work in various energy topics. The full migration of the website to the UPecon server was also completed, permanently housing the data, pieces of evidence, analyses, and other products that EPDP has progressively generated. Due to the budget reduction, the independent mid-term review and photo contest will not push through. Other activities in FY2 were also scaled down to generate savings that could help soften the steep dip in FY3. The resourcing for the gender action plan implementation was also revisited, and the recruitment of additional members for the team was terminated. EPDP's Performance Indicator Tracking Table (PITT) was used to simulate the targets of a scaled-down work plan for FY3, showing a proportionate decrease of targets across the board. Additional USAID standard indicators were also incorporated in the PITT. The program will continue to update the website to enhance user interface and utility, and will issue a Technical Advisory Note to formally convey its technical advice to the EPDP Program Steering Committee.