Reed Bank area, one other site eyed for joint exploration with China —Palace

Two areas in the West Philippine Sea are being considered for possible joint exploration with China, Malacañang said Friday.

At a press briefing in Tarlac, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque identified Service Contracts 57 and 72 as potential areas for joint exploration by Filipino and Chinese corporations.

SC 57 is located west of the Calamian Islands in northwest Palawan while SC 72 is in the disputed Reed Bank.

The Philippines suspended exploration in the Reed Bank in 2014 as it pursued international arbitration of its territorial disputes with China.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague invalidated China’s claim over most of the South China Sea.

Beijing has since refused to recognize the ruling.

The arbitration tribunal's ruling spelled out the Philippines’ sovereign rights to access offshore oil and gas fields, including the Reed Bank, within its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

“Now ang alam ko, ang Service Contract 57, hindi po apektado iyan ng any dispute. So diyan po pupuwedeng magkaroon ng joint exploration, walang dispute, so pumapayag lang tayo,” Roque said.

“Ang problema po, iyong 72 ay may dispute. So kinakailangan ay magkaroon muna ng kasunduan ang dalawang bansa bago po matuloy itong joint exploration na ito," it added.

"Pero ang joint exploration naman po, gaya nung nangyari ng Joint Maritime Seismic Agreement, it would be implemented by corporations and not by sovereign states,” Roque said.

Pursuing a joint project would be extremely complex and sensitive, as sharing oil and gas reserves could be seen as endorsing the other country's claims.

Roque, however, said any joint exploration with China wouldn't require the Philippines to recognize Beijing's sovereign rights in the disputed areas.

"Certainly not. Joint exploration is exactly what it is – it’s a practical solution for the Filipinos to utilize natural resources without having to deal with the contentious conflicting claims to territories," Roque said.

China claims most of the South China Sea, a key route in global trade and a resource-rich territory whose parts are subject to competing claims with Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines.  —NB, GMA News