DOE to fasttrack rural electrification program

Energy Secretary Jose Isidro "Lito" Camacho said they will look at the possibility of fast tracking the previous administration’s rural electrification program.

Camacho said he has instructed the task force on rural electrification program to look for ways and means to accelerate the program. He noted that the timeframe of the project is "very ambitious" considering the program is now behind schedule.

The program seeks to provide electricity to about 99.9 percent of all barangays by 2004 and complete 3.2 million connections by 2008.

The DOE has energized all of the country’s cities and municipalities, but electrification at the village level is still at 80 percent which means there are about 8,000 barangays left to energize.

In the last two years, the program was able to provide electricity to only about 1,000 to 1,200 barangays.

"Imagine the number of barangays we have to electrify every year. So I’m pushing them to come up with new ideas on how we can accelerate program," Camacho said.

With 8,000 barangays remaining to be energized, he said the DOE has to work double time. "We have to almost double our capacity to meet that objective," he said.

Given the current resources of the government, Camacho admitted that they would have difficulty achieving such "ambitious" target without the help of the private sector.

"The present partners and resources we have in the department are insufficient to support the program. They have been very helpful, the IPPs (independent power producers), in fact several energy-related companies have on their own volunteered to participate in this adopt-a-barangay program. There are foundations that are working actively with the task force, but we need more," he said.

In three weeks, he said the task force is expected to submit its recommendations on how to speed up the program. By that time, the DOE chief said they will be able to determine and decide whether they have to modify the timetable for the implementation of the program or not.