ILOILO City — Concerned that rising electricity prices could eventually erode Boracay’s competitiveness as a premier tourist destination, business leaders, local officials, and consumer groups on the island are calling on national government agencies to take urgent action to address the Visayas’ worsening power supply situation.
The appeal was raised during a stakeholders’ forum organized by the Aklan Electric Cooperative, Inc. (AKELCO), where participants warned that persistently high electricity costs could discourage investments and increase operating expenses for hotels, resorts, restaurants, and other tourism-related businesses that depend on reliable and affordable power.
What began as a briefing on the July increase in electricity rates soon evolved into a wider discussion on the long-term energy challenges confronting Boracay, Panay Island, and the rest of the Visayas.
AKELCO officials explained that the higher electricity rates are not unique to Aklan but are being experienced by electric cooperatives across the Visayas because of soaring prices in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), where distribution utilities source part of their electricity requirements.
They said the spike in generation costs was triggered by higher electricity demand, outages in several power plants, and repeated Yellow and Red Alert declarations over the Visayas Grid that resulted in tighter power supply.
According to the cooperative, the residential electricity rate for July would have reached ₱15.6756 per kilowatt-hour, or ₱3.5695 per kWh higher than the June rate, had it not continued implementing a staggered recovery of WESM charges approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). The scheme allows consumers to pay only a portion of the increase in the current billing cycle, with the remaining balance spread over the succeeding months.
AKELCO Board President Virgilio “Boyet” Sacdalan said Boracay’s prominence as one of the country’s leading tourism destinations gives stakeholders a stronger platform to push for reforms in the energy sector.
He stressed that the issue extends beyond electric cooperatives and should be treated as a concern of the entire region.
Sacdalan urged stakeholders to unite in appealing to the Department of Energy (DOE), the ERC, and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to fast-track measures that would address inadequate power generation and delays in transmission projects, which he identified as major contributors to recurring increases in electricity prices.
Malay Sangguniang Bayan member Alan Palma likewise proposed that local government units, business organizations, civil society groups, and other stakeholders jointly submit a signed petition requesting a formal dialogue with the DOE, ERC, NGCP, and other concerned agencies.
He also suggested inviting electric cooperatives throughout Panay Island to participate in a regional consultation aimed at identifying long-term solutions to the Visayas’ power concerns.
Meanwhile, Sangguniang Bayan member Vicky Aguirre, chairperson of the committee on power and energy, said the municipal council is drafting a resolution urging the DOE to establish an inter-agency task force that will study the power supply issues affecting Panay Island.
She said the proposed body would pave the way for broader collaboration among national agencies, local governments, electric cooperatives, business groups, and other stakeholders in developing lasting solutions to stabilize electricity prices.
AKELCO General Manager Atty. Ariel Gepty, meanwhile, cautioned that consumers could continue to experience higher electricity bills if the underlying supply problems in the Visayas remain unresolved.
He emphasized that electric cooperatives do not determine generation prices but merely recover the actual cost of electricity purchased from suppliers.
The forum concluded with participants expressing support for a unified regional initiative aimed at strengthening power generation and transmission infrastructure to ensure a more reliable electricity supply and protect the long-term growth of Boracay’s tourism industry and the broader Visayas economy./PN
