Camarines Sur power cooperative gets P624 million DBP loan

MANILA, Philippines — State-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has extended loans amounting to P624 million to an electric cooperative from Camarines Sur to help improve its services to 82,000 households in the province.

In a statement, DBP President and chief executive officer Cecilia Borromeo said the bank has signed a P624-million loan agreement with the Camarines Sur III Electric Cooperative (CASURECO III) to finance the cooperatives’ initiatives to improve power distribution and reduce systems losses in its area of service.

The loan, she said, will also be used to train CASURECO’s personnel.

With the approval of the loan, Borromeo said CASURECO III is now the third electric cooperative supported by the DBP in Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte. Majority of the water districts in the Bicol Region are also funded by the DBP.

CASURECO III serves Iriga City and the towns of Nabua, Bato, Buhi, Balatan, Bula, and Baao, with a combined population of around 412,450. It has accomplished 100 percent electrification of all 229 barangays in its areas of coverage.

Incorporated in 1975, the electric cooperative was upgraded by the National Electrification Administration to Category C in 2016 and Category B the following year because of its compliance with key performance standards.

CASURECO III maintains deposits with DBP lriga, and has availed of other DBP services, such as payroll servicing, deposit pick-up, and salary loan program for its employees.

DBP has also installed an automated teller machine at the CASURECO III office to facilitate the delivery of electronic banking services to its officers, employees and customers.

DBP is the eighth largest bank in the country, with total assets amounting to P632.93 billion as of end-September 2018.

The bank reported a net income of P4.49 billion in the first nine months of the year, reflecting a 13-percent improvement compared to P3.98 billion in the same period last year.