Baricuatro: Cebu’s economic growth strains power grid

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu’s expanding economy is putting greater pressure on a power system already facing tighter supply and transmission constraints, raising the urgency of investments needed to keep electricity reliable, Gov. Pamela Baricuatro said.

“One of our biggest concerns today is power stability,” Baricuatro said, citing several yellow alerts in recent months as electricity demand rises across homes, businesses, hospitals, schools and industries.

The strain comes as Central Visayas remains the largest regional economy outside Metro Manila. The region grew 3.7 percent in 2025, bringing gross regional domestic product to about P1.32 trillion despite trade pressures, typhoons, an earthquake and other disruptions.

For Cebu, sustaining that growth will require more than new power plants. Generation, battery storage and transmission capacity must expand together to ensure electricity reaches consumers when demand peaks.

Battery storage is emerging as an important part of that response.

Aboitiz Power Corp. is developing a 60-megawatt battery energy storage system in Naga City, designed to improve grid flexibility and support rising electricity demand in the Visayas.

“Naga BESS represents transformation in action,” said Celso Caballero III, president and chief executive officer of AboitizPower’s Transition Business Group.

Meralco PowerGen Corp. has also energized the first phase of its Toledo battery project, with 25 MW of capacity and 56.44 megawatt-hours of storage. The facility can store electricity from renewable and conventional sources and release it during periods of high demand.

But batteries alone cannot solve Cebu’s power constraints.

Storage needs electricity to charge, while new generation requires adequate transmission infrastructure to deliver power to consumers. Without those links, projects can remain available on paper without materially improving reliability.

The Visayas has a growing pipeline of renewable energy projects. Department of Energy (DOE) data cited by the Philippine Information Agency showed 2,179.47 MW of committed renewable capacity in the region as of May, including biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar and wind.

Committed energy-storage capacity stood at 419.9 MW, including battery and hybrid projects, according to the same data.

Transmission remains a critical piece of the equation. The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) is building the Cebu-Lapu-Lapu 230-kilovolt transmission line and the Lapu-Lapu 230-kV substation to support Metro Cebu and Mactan Island and accommodate additional renewable capacity.

The projects highlight the central challenge facing Cebu: infrastructure must be delivered at the same pace as demand.

Power plants, renewable projects and storage facilities pass through permitting, financing, land acquisition, construction and grid-connection processes. Delays in any one of those steps can weaken the impact of investments elsewhere in the system.

That makes coordination increasingly important as Cebu plans for its next phase of growth.

Baricuatro has announced plans for a Provincial Energy Master Plan that will bring together national energy policy, local priorities and private-sector investments. The plan aims to make Cebu “energy-secure, climate-resilient and future-ready.”

The approach reflects a shift in how Cebu’s power problem is being viewed. Reliability is no longer simply a utility issue. It is becoming a competitiveness concern for a regional economy that depends on continuous electricity for manufacturing, commerce, tourism, digital services and essential infrastructure.

Cebu needs renewable energy to expand, storage to provide flexibility, dependable generation to support the grid and transmission lines to move power where it is needed.

The test is whether those investments can be delivered as one system rather than as separate projects moving on different timelines.

Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) president Barbara Gothong-Tan said for Cebu, the objective is not simply to prevent the next yellow alert. It is to build a power system capable of keeping pace with economic growth.

If that coordination succeeds, the current pressure on the grid could become a catalyst for a more reliable and resilient energy system — one capable of supporting Cebu’s next chapter of expansion, she added.