PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Patricia A O Bunye and Rafael Raymundo A Evangelista, Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia
submission reflects a unified national effort to con - tribute to the global 1.5°C goal. In November 2025, the CCC signed a Memorandum of Understanding to reaffirm and establish a shared climate agenda, with partners from various sec - tors, including the National Commission on Indig - enous Peoples, the Philippine Information Agency, government-owned and controlled corporations, higher educational institutions and non-government organisations. The CCC observes a whole-of-nation and whole-of-society approach to advance its pro - grammes for climate resilience. 3.2 Climate Change Legislation and Proposals Related to Mining No climate change legislation specifically related to mining has been enacted. However, the DENR called on the mining industry to innovate and align with the principles of sustainability, stewardship and resilience in their development of the country’s natural resourc - es. Mining companies are being encouraged to fur - ther integrate social and ecological considerations into their operations, including promoting biodiversity, reducing carbon footprints and implementing effective waste management practices. The DENR emphasised that these efforts not only should be considered as regulatory requirements but must also become essen - tial elements of a progressive and responsible mining sector. In February 2025, the DENR issued an administrative order requiring mining companies to include biodi - versity conservation and climate action in their social development and management programmes. This directive aims to integrate the United Nations Sus - tainable Development Goals into the community plans of mining companies. 3.3 Sustainable Development Initiatives Related to Mining The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (see 3.1 Climate Change Effects ) has adopted the Mining Association of Canada’s “Towards Sustainable Min - ing” (TSM) sustainability standards in response to the call for the mining industry to align with the respon - sible mining practices of Australia and Canada. TSM requires mining companies to annually assess their
tailings management, community outreach, safety and health, biodiversity conservation, crisis management, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions manage - ment. 3.4 Energy-Transition Minerals Based on the United States Geological Survey, the Philippines has the fourth-largest nickel reserves in the world, and according to S&P Global, the Philip - pines was the second-largest producer of mined nickel in 2024. Thus, even during the downturn of the mining industry in the Philippines, local mining com - panies continued to ship nickel to China, Japan and other markets. The Philippine government recognises the following: • the need to utilise this natural resource by restrict - ing its export and developing the local processing industry; and • that nickel is important to achieving a transition to a cleaner, greener and more sustainable future. As an energy-transition mineral (ETM), nickel is a vital component for the lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, the use of which is currently being endorsed and developed by the Philippine govern - ment, having passed Republic Act No 11697, An Act Providing for the Development of the Electric Vehicle Industry, in 2021. In connection with the above, the President of the Philippines signed Executive Order No 12 on 13 Jan - uary 2023, providing a temporary zero importation tariff on electric vehicles and their spare parts for a period of five years. It is hoped that this will encourage motorists to shift from traditional modes of transporta - tion to electric vehicles. An influx of electric vehicles could lead to a demand for nickel which, in turn, may necessitate new government or legislative action. In this regard, it has been reported that the current Trade Secretary believes that the Philippines can be a sup - plier of electric vehicle components, specifically ETMs for batteries. In this connection, the Department of Energy has publicly announced that it aims to roll out approximately 2.5 million electric vehicles by 2028.
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