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TIWI GEO-ECOLOGICAL PARK OPENS TOMORROW

Tiwi, Albay, June 8, 2000 - To mark 30 years of geothermal development in the country, state-firm National Power Corporation (NPC) and Philippine Geothermal Inc. (PGI), in partnership with the municipality of Tiwi in Albay, will launch the Naglabong Geothermal People's Park, or "Nag Park" tomorrow, Friday.

PGI president D. Stephen Pye said the planned geo-ecological park is in keeping with PGI's and NPC's corporate mission of environmental stewardship. The natural theme park intends to preserve the natural geological features of the Naglabong area and showcase the development of Tiwi as a hub for indigenous energy.

The groundbreaking ceremony will be attended by local government officials led by Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara, Tiwi Mayor Pat Gutierrez; NPC officials led by vice president Antonio Corpuz and plant manager Reynaldo Santiago; PGI officials headed by Pye, vice president for commercial affairs Luli Heras-de Leon and Tiwi asset manager Jens Pedersen.

The park development brings together the aesthetic, scientific and outdoor appeal of Mts. Mayon and Malinao, the marine environment of Albay Gulf and the man-made features of the Tiwi Geothermal Plant.

Pedersen said Nag Park is envisioned to be a jump off-point for a broad range of eco-educational-tourism activities like trekking, mountaineering, snorkeling and on-site learning through actual field exposure on the complex and interdependent relations between man and the environment.

"The Naglabong Geothermal People's Park we are launching capitalizes on the educational and recreational value of an extant natural resources base by integrating this with other adjacent environmental amenities and the local heritage," Pedersen added.

Pedersen said the major landmark of the park is a science centrum that will house a museum, an information center and a meeting and office facilities.

Mayor Gutierrez said Nag Park used to form part of the tourist destinations in Tiwi. The park offered a wide range of natural attractions such as hotsprings, fumaroles, boiling mud pools, and silica sinter mounds, which locals and visitors alike frequented for its scenic and recreational value.

PGI is a wholly-owned subsidiary of US-based Unocal Corporation (Unocal), a leading independent energy and project development company.

Together with NPC, PGI pioneered the exploration and commercial development of geothermal resources in the Philippines. With an investment of $475 million in the Tiwi and Mak-Ban geothermal fields, PGI has partnered with NPC in delivering 15 percent of the power requirements in Luzon. The Tiwi and Mak-Ban plants have a combined installed capacity of 756 megawatts.