TO advance the energy transition in their localities, Eastern Visayas local chief executives have forged a partnership with the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC), and committed to developing local energy plans and enacting renewable energy (RE) ordinances that will “enable access to cleaner, more affordable and reliable power for communities in the region.”
Eastern Visayas has long struggled with unreliable and unsustainable energy, which has historically disrupted health facilities, communications networks and schools. Even though the region has the potential to host solar and geothermal plants, it has depended heavily on coal-fired power, resulting in some of the highest electricity rates in the country, reaching P20.96 per kilowatt-hour in 2022.
During the ceremonial memoranda of understanding (MOU) signing held in Tacloban City on Feb. 19, Lovell Ann Yu-Castro, mayor of Alangalang, Leyte, said that they are drafting plans and laying the foundation for a resilient future.
“This is not only about energy, but this is about economic opportunity and green jobs. It is about lowering power costs for families, and providing energy security for our schools, health centers and public services,” Yu-Castro said.
Represented by their mayors, the local government units (LGUs) of Paranas and Marabut in the province of Samar; and Guiuan, Oras and Salcedo in the province of Eastern Samar, also joined Alangalang, Leyte, in forging partnerships with ICSC to implement a participatory local energy-planning process. The MOUs aim to translate community needs and local development priorities into actionable clean energy transition plans, supported by enabling local policies.
Alignment
Under the partnership, each LGU pledged to contribute to the country’s national objectives by aligning local actions with national energy mechanisms and policies, such as the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act, the Department of the Interior and Local Government–Department of Energy Joint Memorandum Circular 2020-01 on facilitating energy projects and voluntary renewable programs such as Net Metering and the Green Energy Option Program.
Elvira Babalcon, mayor of Paranas, Samar, said that local energy planning is not just an option but a responsibility that local leaders must work on “not in the future but now. We commit to integrating renewable energy into our local development plans, promoting solar and energy solutions, building local capacities and encouraging community participation.”
ICSC is also committed to providing technical assistance and capacity-building support to help LGUs conduct multi-stakeholder local energy planning, develop clean energy transition plans, craft RE ordinances and support investment mobilization for the RE transition.
ICSC Executive Director Angelo Kairos dela Cruz said that they have pledged to support priority energy transition actions that the LGUs may explore: promoting rooftop solar adoption across public, commercial, agri-industrial and residential buildings; pursuing local transition roadmaps such as RE for sustainable tourism; scaling community RE initiatives; and conducting information, education and awareness campaigns, and local incentive measures to encourage RE uptake.
“Every signature, decision and step that we take will serve as a symbol of our vision and collective action toward achieving a better and more resilient future for Eastern Visayas,” dela Cruz said.
He noted that active collaboration across sectors and institutions proves that the energy transition is possible. “It needs to happen urgently, and we trust that every LGU present here will ensure that we progress forward.”
