THE National Electrification Administration (NEA) is pushing to attain 94% electrification rate for remote households in 2025 through its partner electric cooperatives across the country.
In a statement on Sunday, NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano C. Almeda said that the state-owned corporation remains optimistic about achieving its target despite “working under limited budget.”
He said that Mindanao provinces are still at the top of NEA’s priorities.
“I was informed that Congress heard already the funding requirement, and we are expecting by 2025, we will be reaching about 94%, if all logistical support and funding support will be present,” Mr. Almeda said.
According to NEA, it was granted a total of P1.627 billion in government subsidy to power some 22,000 households based on the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) signed last week, in addition to P200 million for the Electric Cooperatives Emergency and Resiliency Fund.
Raymond Napilot, NEA’s acting department manager for the rural electrification special program office, said that the amount did not change from the approved subsidy for rural electrification projects in the 2024 GAA.
The government has also allocated P2 billion for the ongoing programs of NEA such as the Photovoltaic Mainstreaming and the Sitio Electrification and Barangay Line Enhancement Programs.
“We are targeting by 2028, we can fully energize the whole Philippines. But, of course, that requires some funding support. Definitely, with what we have right now, we are doing our best to extend and maximize the supply of electricity in remote areas,” Mr. Almeda said.
NEA is primarily responsible for rural electrification, bringing electricity to missionary or economically unviable parts of the countryside. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
