Aboitiz eyes 30% of Mindanao retail power market

Advent Energy, Inc., the retail electricity supply arm of Aboitiz Power Corp., is optimistic about its growth potential in Mindanao with the expansion of the government’s Retail Competition and Open Access (RCOA) scheme.

James Yu, Aboitiz Power first vice president and head of retail, said that the implementation of RCOA in Mindanao got off to a slow start as eligible power users were not familiar with the program.

RCOA allows participants consuming at least 500 kilowatts a month to buy cheaper electricity from retailers other than the existing suppliers in their area. Its commercial operations in Mindanao began in March 2024.

“The business in Mindanao for the past six months has been trying to educate the market because it opened up, but in reality, people don’t really know how it works,” he told reporters in a recent interview.

While challenges remain, such as outdated meter data of smaller consumers, the official said there was still “a big potential in Mindanao.”

He said they expect to see RCOA gain more traction in Mindanao in the “next few months.”

Last August, AdventEnergy marked its expansion to Mindanao with an agreement with coconut and vegetable oil producer Third Millenium Oil Mills Inc.

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Yu said the group is targeting to corner a 30-percent share of the market in Mindanao—the same level as its Luzon and Visayas operations. Qualified power consumers in Mindanao are currently at around 290.

“So I think, literally when I say this, Luzon and Visayas are 10 years ahead of Mindanao,” he said.

“Visayas and Luzon is basically a saturated market,” the executive added.

He said the growth in the two islands mainly comes now from customers’ expansion. “And obviously the economy continues to grow. And the demand and interest is going up,” Yu said. INQ