In his 2025 State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. vowed to energize over one million more homes, but even as the country moves forward, regions like Bicol continue to suffer from frequent brownouts, and quietly endures the poorest-performing electric cooperatives in the country since the National Electrification Administration’s (NEA) online public records began in 2016.

President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. said his administration is accelerating efforts to boost the country’s power supply, with a target of completing nearly 200 power plants by 2028. These are expected to serve over four million households, more than 12,000 factories, and nearly 7,000 offices and businesses.

"Hahabulin at tutuparin ng DOE (Department of Energy) at NEA ang natatakdang dami ng mga kabayahang makakabitan ng kuryente ngayong taon hanggang 2028, lalung-lalo na sa Quezon, sa Camarines Norte, sa Palawan, sa Masbate, sa Samar, sa Negros Occidental, sa Zamboanga Del Sur," the president said.

He also acknowledged the lingering energy challenges felt by many Filipinos, such as the lack of electricity in three million households, recurring brownouts, and high electricity costs.

Marcos said when he took office, more than five million homes had no electricity. Since then, about 2.5 million homes have been connected to the grid, with an additional one million expected to be reached through solar power systems before the end of his term.

To make energy more affordable, the president announced the expansion of the Lifeline Rate subsidy to include more low-income families, not just 4Ps beneficiaries.

He also highlighted DOE’s Net Metering Program, which allows consumers to sell excess solar power back to the grid.

PUBLICIZED POWER CRISIS IN VISAYAS

One of the most publicized energy disruptions this 2025 occurred in Siquijor, Central Visayas, where prolonged brownouts prompted the provincial government to declare a state of calamity.

"Hindi ko palalampasin ang nangyari kamakailan sa Siqujor," Marcos said.

"Sa ginawa nating imbestigasyon, ano ang ating natuklasan? Mga expired na permits. Mga sirang generators, na halatang napabayaan, kaya sunod-sunod na bumibigay. Mabagal na aksyon, at kawalan ng maayos na sistema sa pagbili ng krudo at mga piyesa. Ipinag-utos ko sa DOE, NEA, at ERC na pabalikin sa normal ang serbisyo ng kuryente sa Siquijor bago matapos ang taon," Marcos added.

QUIET POWER STRUGGLE IN BICOL

But even as Siquijor’s case gained national attention, many parts of the Bicol Region have long been facing similar problems, quietly and persistently.

According to NEA’s 2024 Electric Cooperative (EC) Performance Assessment, three ECs in Bicol: Albay Electric Cooperative (ALECO), Masbate Electric Cooperative (MASELCO), and Ticao Island Electric Cooperative (TISELCO), continue to underperform.

These three ECs have held the poorest ratings consistently since NEA’s publicly available records began in 2016.

ALECO and MASELCO remained in the red classification for eight consecutive years, while TISELCO, after years of poor performance, was downgraded to orange in 2024.

They are the only ECs in the region still tagged as “ailing” by NEA. Despite this, their situation has remained largely under the radar of national media coverage.

In contrast, other Bicol ECs such as CANORECO, CASURECO I, III, and IV, and FICELCO have achieved strong performance ratings, classified as green under NEA standards.

But for residents within ALECO, MASELCO, and TISELCO’s coverage areas, the effects are still felt through recurring brownouts, emergency power interruptions, and frequently disrupted livelihoods.

“Dealing with the heat, disruption with work [or] school activities that are in need of electricity and internet connection, and even in the simple actions of life like doing chores that rely on power,” Ashera Diana Delos Santos, a veterinary medicine student, said.

“It would have been understandable if there [is a] power outage in the area once in a while, however, aside from the event itself being annoying and time consuming; numerous and frequent ones over a span of a day causes many electrical appliances to short circuit,” she added.

Joshua Ducante, a student from Ligao who travels to Legazpi City for school, shared how hard it is to keep up with online classes.

“We often lose signal and power at the same time. Even if we want to attend classes, we simply can’t… they should fix what needs to be fixed before it ruins more of the system,” Ducante said.

In Albay alone, as of 4 p.m. on July 29, 2025, ALECO has announced 11 power interruptions in seven substations for the past 24 hours.

In Pio Duran, the town’s only public hospital struggles with low voltage supply. Staff rely on a generator during peak hours just to keep essential equipment running.

Earlier in February 2025, Masbate faced days of rotating brownouts after their power plant broke down, affecting 19 towns. Residents endured hours of subsequent outages.

Despite these challenges, linemen and on-ground personnel continue to work around the clock to restore power and respond to breakdowns. Their efforts, often under dangerous conditions and limited resources, have kept the system from collapsing altogether.

While the frontliners continue to do their jobs on the ground, for Bicolanos, the issue is how to make the system something they can depend on again.