DOE to complete P1.3-B rural electrification by year-end

Business Mirror
SUNDAY, 18 DECEMBER 2011 18:36 PAUL ANTHONY A. ISLA / REPORTER


THE Department of Energy (DOE) is confident it would meet its rural electrification target by providing access to 1,420 sitios before the end of the year, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras told reporters.
The energy chief said in an interview that the project entails an investment of P1.3 billion, the highest disbursement made on rural electrification.


“We started this project in October. This project does not use solar home systems. Households will be connected to grid and to the Small Power Utilities Group (Spug) of the National Power Corp. (Napocor). As of Wednesday, I’m very happy that indications show we’re going to make it year-end,” he said.


Almendras said that the money was sourced from the savings the DOE had last year.


He said the project brings the government close to its target of reaching 90-percent household electrification by 2017.


To date, according to Almendras, household electrification stands at around 72 percent to 75 percent, which they want to escalate to 90 percent by 2017. He said rural electrification is aligned with the government’s thrust of investing in the rural areas.


“It’s peripheral economics. We want to push the money in the most rural, remote areas of the regions because if you talk inclusive growth, we need to provide the infrastructure in a geographically disadvantaged area, which includes those with no access to electricity,” he said. He added that they are also working with congressional districts, local government units, civil society and even the Catholic Church in verifying if these resources have reached the target sitios.


Almendras said the biggest challenge for them was logistics and project management, as some electric cooperatives had the capability and financial muscle, while some are not capable because of financial considerations.


He said the National Electrification Administration paired electric cooperatives that had the technical capabilities and financial muscle with those with limited capabilities.


Almendras said the project covers the entire country, though most of the sitios are in the Visayas and Mindanao.


For 2012, Almendras said they have been allocated P2.5 billion for rural electrification.


“If we can pull this year’s project off in one quarter. Looks like we can do P2.5 billion in the first six months, and again if there are savings, we can deploy more than what was budgeted by Congress for sitio electrification,” he added.


“The biggest challenge remains to be those electric cooperatives that have limited capabilities. But pairing them with those that have the technical and financial capability proved to be a good solution and is working out well,” Almendras said.