Four senatorial bets vow to support renewable energy bills

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MANILA, Philippines – Opposition senatorial candidates pledged legislative action on the shift to renewable energy sources to address rising electricity costs and stem global warming during a town hall forum hosted by the Power for People (P4P) Coalition on April 24.

Partido Lakas ng Masa candidates Leody de Guzman and Luke Espiritu, along with Makabayan senatorial candidates Teddy Casiño and Mimi Doringo, accepted P4P’s invitation to attend the event. 

Around 75% of voters would support candidates who will champion energy security and a faster transition to renewable energy, according to a February 2025 Social Weather Stations survey, commissioned by Stratbase Consultancy. But the country’s growing energy demand may pose challenges to this transition.

Support for coal

Espiritu argued that transitioning to renewable energy sources is possible but is impeded by incumbents in the Senate who continue to push for non-renewable energy. He specifically called out Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero, who has advocated for lifting the moratorium on new coal-fired power plants, and Senator Raffy Tulfo, who authored a bill promoting the development of the country’s natural gas industry. Coal and natural gas are fossil fuels, sources of energy that have largely fuelled global warming. But some argue that coal remains to be the most affordable and reliable energy source for the country.

During the third reading of the natural gas bill, some senators flagged how the bill could force the market to buy local natural gas, even if it is more expensive, with the extra cost likely to be passed on to consumers. 

“The only reason kung bakit sinasabi nila na hindi ito posible ay dahil ang Pilipinas ay may mababang contribution sa greenhouse gasses. Kaya ang kanilang solusyon ay padamihin pa ang greenhouse gas [emissions],” Espiritu said.

(The only reason they say this is not possible is because the Philippines has a low contribution to greenhouse gases. So their solution is to increase greenhouse gas emissions.)

Espiritu is pertaining to the Philippines’ less than 1% contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions (as of 2021), emissions that lead to climate change. Many have used this figure, and the need for the Philippines to have flexible energy options to grow its economy, to justify moderate national targets to reduce emissions. 

The Philippines has pledged to reduce its emissions by 75% from 2020 to 2030, according to its Nationally Determined Contributions to climate agreements. But most of this target is conditioned on the provision of aid from more developed countries.

Where solar power shines

Senatorial candidate Teddy Casiño also pledged to revisit his One Million Solar Roofs bill, which aims to incentivize households and businesses to install solar panels. The proposal allows them to get loans from agencies like Pag-IBIG, Government Service Insurance System, and Social Security System, with repayments drawn from savings on electricity bills. (READ: Renewable energy technology for energy transition)

“Hindi natin kailangang tapatan yung malalaking planta, maging independent lang yung ating mga residential and small businesses from these big energy providers. And using renewable is already a first step,” he said.

(We don’t need to compete with the large power plants; we just need to make our residential areas and small businesses independent from these big energy providers. And using renewable energy is already a first step.)

The bill was refiled by the Makabayan bloc on April 15, 2024, but it remains pending with the House Committee on Energy. 

But renewable energy sources are mostly intermittent — solar only produces power when the sun is out, and wind generation depends on wind availability. So, even though individual solar panels can reduce reliance on the main power grid, baseload power plants are still necessary to provide backup power when renewables aren’t sufficient. There is, however, improving technology on batteries able to store different types of renewable energy for later use.

Carlos Aboitiz, chief corporate services officer of Aboitiz Power Corporation, also pointed out in a forum last year that solar and onshore wind have relatively low capacity factors, around 20% and 31%, respectively, compared to the much higher availability of traditional energy sources like coal. Capacity factor pertains to how often a power source produces electricity at its full power.

With the Department of Energy expecting the country’s peak electricity demand to grow by 5.3% annually until 2028, balancing renewable energy efforts while maintaining energy security could prove challenging.

Amending EPIRA

While all four candidates believe renewable energy is sustainable, they also agree on the need to amend the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), a law that restructured the power sector by separating generation, transmission, and distribution, while promoting private sector participation.

EPIRA has been criticized for allowing cross-ownership in the energy sector. This means that power distribution utilities can also own or invest in power generation companies, which may lead to unfair competition and distorted pricing.

Espiritu further asserted that the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) functions more as an enabler of distribution utilities and power generators, rather than protecting consumers from potential price manipulation in electricity rates.

“Sila dapat ang may expertise na talagang mag-regulate sa ating distribution utilities, at sa ganun, dapat din nilang i-regulate ang ating mga generation companies. Dapat maasahan sila bilang ahensya na may kaalaman at expertise sa power manipulation,” he said.

(They should be the ones with the expertise to truly regulate our distribution utilities, and likewise, they should also regulate our generation companies. They should be a reliable agency with the knowledge and expertise in power system management.)

Just last week, the ERC approved the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) collection of an additional ₱28.29 billion in transmission charges.

Doringo also criticized corporate involvement in energy and urged that it be treated as a public service rather than for profit-making. 

“Gawin natin ito at ituon bilang isang serbisyo sa tao — hindi bilang pagkakataon para pagkakitaan ng mga negosyante,” she said.

(Let’s treat this as a service to the people, not as an opportunity for businessmen to make a profit.)

Consumer rights groups have long scrutinized corporate influence in the power sector, with both Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla and ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta having previously held key positions in Aboitiz Power Corporation.

In light of concerns over monopolization, Casiño called for the nationalization of the Malampaya gas field, which is primarily owned by Prime Energy Resources Development B.V., a subsidiary of Prime Infrastructure Capital Incorporated, controlled by businessman Enrique Razon.

De Guzman claimed that political dynasties enable big corporations to block efforts to move away from fossil fuels.

“Ang unang paraan, wakasan natin ang political dynasty. Alisin natin. Huwag nating iboto ang mga senador ni Marcos, mga senador ni Duterte, at ibang mga political dynasty; sila ang hadlang sa pag-implement ng shift mula sa fossil fuel patungo sa renewable energy,” he said.

(The first step is to end political dynasties. Remove them. Let’s not vote for senators aligned with the Marcoses, the Dutertes, or any other political dynasties; they are the ones hindering the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.)

With only a few days left before voters head to the polls, energy security and transitioning to renewable energy remain critical election issues amid heat waves and high electricity prices. – Rappler.com

Andrei Rosario is a Rappler intern. Learn more about Rappler’s internship program here.