NEA takes over Palawan electric cooperative

The National Electrification Administration has taken over the management of Palawan Electric Cooperative (Paleco), the lone provider of power service to Palawan province, amid frequent brownouts on the island.

NEA Administrator Edgardo Masongsong said in a statement that he issued last Dec. 10 an order that designated Nelson Lalas as project supervisor and acting general manager of Paleco.

Masongsong said Lalas would remain in such post until the appointment of a regular general manager, which is subject to confirmation by the NEA.

He said Lalas was tasked to manage the day-to-day operations of Paleco to ensure the efficient delivery of electric service to the member-consumer-owners.

Masongsong said NEA’s intervention came a month after President Duterte issued a stern warning to local officials to solve the energy issues in Palawan, a haven for foreign and local tourists.

Paleco services Puerto Princesa City and 18 town with 137,277 consumers or 57 percent of the 240,700 potential connections in the province.

The NEA chief said Mr. Duterte gave Paleco until the end of the year to address the frequent brownouts or he would get a new electricity provider for Palawan if the problem persisted.

“The temporary solution is for NEA to take over right away, fix the governance problem, release it from capture, contract an independent power producer that will deliver the necessary supply and then later on think about whether to offer it to the private sector or not,” Masongsong said.

“Despite its status as an electric cooperative registered with the Cooperative Development Authority, the NEA will not stand idly by,” he said. “We will exercise the agency’s inherent jurisdiction over Paleco as it has the technical capability to turn things around in Palawan and for Palawan member-consumer-owners.”