AI boom may reshape Philippine energy, water plans

By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Senior Reporter

THE GOVERNMENT may need to revise its long-term energy and water development plans to account for the growing resource needs of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) said.

DEPDev Undersecretary Rosemarie G. Edillon said the government must account for the significant energy and water requirements of AI data centers as it ramps up the use of AI in monitoring and evaluation (M&E).

Ms. Edillon said the issue will be addressed in the AI Governance Framework that DEPDev plans to present to President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. within the month.

“It’s very important that we safeguard not just the sovereignty but also the long-term sustainability of the Philippine economy and society,” she told a panel at the 13^th M&E Network Forum on Wednesday.

“And in terms of the strategies that we have identified in the governance framework, we have actually included the part that we should now be incorporating the AI infrastructure and actually all these emerging technologies,” she added.

Ms. Edillon said the government’s long-term strategy includes factoring in the infrastructure needs of AI and other emerging technologies into its energy and water development plans.

“Going forward, it’s really about revising our Philippine Energy Development Plan and also our Water Resource Development Plan,” she added.

The DEPDev official said AI infrastructure, which includes data centers, is among the projects being incentivized by the government through the Strategic Investment Priority Plan.

“With respect to the data centers, they are also provided with incentives, provided that they have their own power source and that a certain percentage, I forgot the amount, but a certain percentage has to be through renewable energy. So, right now, that is our framework,” she added.

Meanwhile, Department of Information and Communications Technology Assistant Secretary Maria Victoria C. Castro said the agency is exploring new energy sources for data centers, including renewable energy as a backup source.

“There are emerging technologies that are now underway that were not considered before… Something that we are incorporating in our plans because we recognize that we need to watch out for the sustainable development part,” she said.

Ms. Castro said the department is also looking at nuclear energy and other emerging technologies as potential sources of power for digital infrastructure.

“Hopefully, the nuclear technology that is forthcoming and that we will be exploring can be a possible source also,” she said.

Department of Science and Technology (DoST) Director and Chief Information Officer Cesar R. Pedraza said the country already has the regulatory framework in place to utilize nuclear energy.

Signed into law last year, Republic Act No. 12305, or the Philippine National Nuclear Energy Safety Act, provides a framework for the peaceful, safe and secure use of nuclear energy and establishes the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority.

“We already have the regulatory capability, and it’s now being built as an agency, which is a prerequisite to implementing a full atomic power generation facility,” Mr. Pedraza said.

“The trajectory is there, and we are looking to implement the use of atomic energy, and the DoST has provided its stand for the safe use of atomic energy,” he added.

Mr. Pedraza said that new technology for cooling systems would help address the large energy needs of sustaining a data center in a tropical country like the Philippines.

“As of last month, a breakthrough technology, particularly done by Japan, has established room-temperature AI machinery, meaning the advent of newer and newer technologies may make less of a problem when it comes to power in the near future,” he added.

Economy Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said that AI use has changed how information is collected, processed, analyzed and communicated.

“For M&E, it can help the government monitor programs more frequently, process field information more quickly, recognize patterns across large and complex data sets, and identify implementation concerns earlier,” he said in his keynote speech.

“Used well, these capabilities can shorten the distance between evidence and action. An early warning can prompt a timely course correction. Information drawn from multiple sources can help decision makers see where implementation is lagging and why,” he added.

Mr. Balisacan said the use of AI can also help address fragmented reporting, uneven data quality, manual processing, and delays in delivering information seen in many government M&E systems.

However, he warned that AI-supported systems can reproduce errors and biases, highlighting the need for a meaningful human review.

“We must assess whether AI-supported systems achieve their intended outcomes, work under actual operating conditions, perform fairly across groups and locations, and deliver benefits that justify their costs and risks,” he added.

United Nations Development Program Resident Representative in the Philippines Christophe Bahuet stressed that although AI can be used to strengthen national evaluation systems, better connect planning and budgeting, and help hasten government response, the government should consider the risks as well.

“The first one is that AI is not a panacea. AI cannot compensate for incomplete or wrong data, fragmented systems, or even weak institutional capacity,” he said in his keynote speech.

“The second reservation is that… faster analysis, predictive tools, or even automated dashboards do not by themselves turn evidence into action… Evidence still needs to be interpreted by officials. They need to be recognized by institutions and reflected in the process through which policies and priorities are set,” he added.