NEA seeks higher budget for rural electrification

MANILA, Philippines - The National Electrification Administration (NEA) is seeking to almost triple its budget for the sitio electrification program (SEP) annually starting 2019 as it targets to energize all rural households nationwide by 2022.

NEA administrator Edgardo Masongsong said 23,464 sitios in the country have yet to be energized through the SEP, and the cost to electrify one sitio is more or less P1 million.

To enable NEA and its partner electric cooperatives to meet the target of energizing the remaining intended SEP beneficiaries, Masongsong said an estimated budget of P5 billion a year is needed.

“We hope that by 2019 to 2022, we will be getting between P4.8-billion to P5.2-billion per annum so we will be able to energize all these sitios until 2022,” Masongsong said.

Funding for the electrification is approved by both houses of Congress and signed by the President under the General Appropriations Act.

So far, the Department of Budget and Management has allowed NEA to spend P1.8 billion to energize 2,410 sitios this year and 1,800 sitios in 2018.

In achieving 100 percent rural electrification, Masongsong said the biggest challenge being faced by the agency and the 121 electric cooperatives is the devastation in the wake of natural disasters.