Calls for Accountability Over Palawan’s Power Issues
- June 3, 2025
Busuanga, Palawan, has long struggled with frequent brownouts, a challenge that continues to affect daily life and economic activity. While supply has improved over the last decade with the entry of power supplier Calamian Islands Power Corporation (CIPC), the rapid rise in tourism and development has driven up demand, straining existing capacity.
To meet the demand, the Busuanga Island Electric Cooperative Inc. (BISELCO) recently signed a new 15-year power supply agreement with CIPC. The deal secures 24 megawatts (MW) of contracted capacity for Busuanga and its neighboring island of Coron, aiming to provide stable electricity and support continued development in the region.
But the question remains: will this added capacity be enough to keep pace with the region’s rapid growth?
(Also read: ERC Approves ₱32B in NGCP Transmission Projects)
Spotlight on Biselco
Palawan’s persistent energy crisis has long been a pressing concern among residents and business owners.
This ongoing frustration is evident on BISELCO’s Facebook page, where a May 2024 post about load shedding—an emergency measure to prevent total blackouts—drew numerous complaints from residents weary of repeated power interruptions.
One user wrote, “Kanina pa brownout 9am-5pm. Tapos ngayon 11 pm, brownout na naman, kung saan ang mga tao nagpapahinga na.” (The power has been out from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and now there’s another outage at 11 p.m., just when people are trying to rest.)
Another commented, “Kanina pa brownout. Nakakasira sa business ng tao, promise.” (The interruptions have lasted all day and are seriously hurting people’s businesses.)
Back in 2021, residents of Culion launched a petition urging the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to investigate BISELCO, which serves the municipalities of Coron, Busuanga, Culion, and Linapacan in the Calamian Islands in northern Palawan.
The petition read: “Napakalaking perwisyo na brownout sa pagtatrabaho, paghahanapbuhay at mga negosyo. Sumira na at nakakasira ng mga pinagsikapan at pinagpagurang mga gamit o appliances ng bawat pamilya. Tumataas pa ang bayarin sa kuryente dahil sa biglaang pagpatay at pagbabalik ng kuryente. Umaantala ng mga serbisyo ng mga ahensya ng gobyerno. Marami na ring sinira sa mahahalaga at mamahaling kagamitan sa Culion Sanitarium and General Hospital.” (Power interruptions have become a major disruption to work, livelihoods, and businesses. They have already damaged, and continue to damage, appliances and equipment that families have worked hard to earn. Electricity bills are also rising due to the sudden shut-offs and power surges. Government services are being delayed, and many essential and expensive equipment at the Culion Sanitarium and General Hospital have also been damaged.)
According to residents, BISELCO often blamed blackouts on geckos interfering with power lines. BISELCO general manager Ruth Fortes acknowledged that even other electric cooperatives struggled with animal-related disruptions—including birds and snakes. She also pointed to imbalanced loading, where machines tend to trip due to fluctuating power demand between day and night.
A year later, the ERC slapped BISELCO with a ₱700,000 fine for repeatedly failing to submit mandatory reports over seven years. The documents—such as power supplier invoices, consumer bills, and transmission records—are key to monitoring the charges passed on to consumers.
The penalty stemmed from BISELCO’s violations of ERC Resolution No. 24 Series of 2011, which requires monthly submissions. Though the ERC had allowed utilities to consolidate reports into annual filings as a courtesy, BISELCO was found to have incomplete or missing submissions from 2012 to 2018.
(Also read: Are Electric Coops Worth the Taxpayers’ Money?)
Palawan Electric Cooperative in focus
The Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO) serves a wide area across mainland Palawan and nearby islands. Its franchise covers Puerto Princesa City and the municipalities of Aborlan, Narra, Sofronio Española, Quezon, Brooke’s Point, Bataraza, Rizal, and Balabac in the southern part of the province. In the north and northeast, it supplies power to Roxas, San Vicente, Taytay, El Nido, Dumaran, and Araceli. PALECO also serves the island municipalities of Cuyo, Magsaysay, Agutaya, and Cagayancillo.
In 2024, The National Electrification Administration (NEA) deactivated the entire board of the Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO) for failing to hold scheduled district elections. The cooperative’s directors were found to have blocked elections in Districts 6, 7, and 8, denying member-consumers their right to vote for local representation.
NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda personally served the order in Puerto Princesa and appointed interim directors from various electric cooperatives to step in. PALECO’s leadership had attempted to justify the election delay through a petition in a regional trial court, but the case was dismissed.
That same year, The House of Representatives called for an investigation into Palawan’s ongoing energy issues and rising electricity rates. Speaker Martin Romualdez and Palawan Representatives Jose Chaves Alvarez and Edgardo Salvame urged the Committee on Energy to look into PALECO’s performance and explore legislative solutions.
“The dire situation in Palawan dampens our enthusiasm over the directives of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to provide the people with low power rates and increase energization targets nationwide by 95% in 2025,” Romualdez said. “I hope that with this probe, we can find a solution for all stakeholders in Palawan, especially our citizens.”
Power rates in Palawan began climbing in late 2023 after PALECO signed an Emergency Power Supply Agreement with Delta P, Inc. The Department of Energy (DOE) later issued a circular declaring that the deal would not be eligible for subsidies—a key factor behind the price hikes.
PALECO pushed back, citing the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001. It argued that, as a Small Power Utilities Group (SPUG) area, Palawan should qualify for government subsidies.
PALECO was also flagged for poor performance, recording the lowest collection efficiency (91%) and the most frequent power interruptions in the Mimaropa region during the second quarter of 2023. NEA also noted PALECO’s low energization rate of 73.67%—well below the national target of 95% by 2025.
House Speaker Martin Romualdez said Congress will explore solutions to help improve PALECO’s operations and bring both immediate and long-term relief to affected residents.
Paradise rising
Palawan’s tourism sector saw a dramatic resurgence in 2023, welcoming 1.53 million visitors—an almost 90% jump from the previous year. Domestic travelers made up the majority, with over 873,000 arrivals, while international tourists numbered more than 653,000. This boom translated to ₱57.2 billion in tourism revenue, up significantly from ₱30.5 billion in 2022.
Globally, Palawan continued to make waves. Tripadvisor ranked it the 4th most trending destination in 2024, and in 2025, the U.S. News & World Report crowned it the best island to visit worldwide, cementing its global appeal.
However, Palawan’s booming tourism industry faces a growing threat from persistent power outages that continue to disrupt daily life across the province. In January 2024, a coalition of members, consumers, and owners of PALECO spoke against the electric cooperative, warning that frequent, unannounced power interruptions are adding to the already scheduled long blackouts.
El Nido, one of Palawan’s top tourist destinations, set a new record in 2023 by welcoming over 500,000 visitors. However, local leaders fear that this success could be undermined if the power situation does not improve.
Tony Cabrestante, a representative of PALECO’s member-consumer group, stressed the importance of reliable electricity for tourism, saying, “Kapag ganito palagi ang sitwasyon, sino ba namang turista ang gaganahan kung palaging walang kuryente. Kahit gaano kaganda ang lugar, kung palagi namang may aberya, tiyak na hindi na babalik ang marami sa kanila.” (If this situation continues, who would want to visit when the power keeps going out? No matter how beautiful the place is, frequent outages will definitely discourage many tourists from coming back.)
Meanwhile, Senator Miguel Zubiri urged the government to partner with the private sector to improve infrastructure in key tourism areas, especially energy systems. He said the Philippines lags behind regional neighbors despite its natural beauty.
“We beat the beaches and the views of our neighbors here in Southeast Asia,” Zubiri explained. “But they beat us in airports, power supply, public transport, and connectivity. That’s why we are still left behind, even though it’s better here in the Philippines.”
Sources:
https://palawan-news.com/culion-residents-petition-against-biselco-for-frequent-blackouts/
https://manilastandard.net/news/314408113/house-eyes-probe-on-power-crisis-besetting-palawan.html
https://paleco.net/paleco/coverage/
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1248777
https://www.philstar.com/business/2024/09/01/2381922/tourism-energy-investments-boost-philippines-competitiveness
https://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php/articles/1217233
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1216834
