Spotlight on women transforming the country’s energy sector

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April 10, 2026 | 3:13pm

MANILA, Philippines — In an industry long defined by men in hard hats and corner offices, women are taking on increasingly prominent roles across energy operations — from thermal plant control rooms in Cebu to solar sites in Bulacan to the legal strategy shaping the energy transition.

At Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGEN), as it advances its mission of Powering a Better Tomorrow, three of its women leaders offer a closer look at what that transformation looks like on the ground.

Engr. Cristine Albarando is the lone female control room engineer across MGEN Thermal’s sites in Cebu. Her day begins 20 to 30 minutes before her shift — a deliberate habit. Ten minutes before the handover, she is already inside the control room.

Her shift opens with a toolbox meeting to discuss plant issues and activities, followed by checks of the DCS monitors, system parameters, and the previous shift’s logbook. From there, she coordinates continuously: following up with maintenance, assigning tasks to operators and flagging anything that could affect plant performance.

“This experience has changed my perspective. Initially I had doubts because I deeply respected the weight of the responsibility. But because of the management’s trust and support, the encouragement from my colleagues, I have learned to accept my role. This has shaped me to become a leader. A woman who used to have fear and doubts is now a woman with pride and confidence,” she said. 

Engr. Jennylene Baluyot manages the MGEN Renewables Bulacan Solar Plant, one of the Philippines’ major renewable energy facilities. Before she held that role, she spent years proving she belonged in a field where she was often the only woman on site.

Her workday starts with numbers. Baluyot reviews generation versus target, checks alarms, inverter status, and any issues carried over from the previous shift. She then conducts a site walk-through to verify what the monitoring system is reporting — checking module conditions, equipment status, and how weather is affecting output. Those findings sometimes immediately reshape priorities.

She described a high-pressure incident in which a significant portion of the plant went offline during peak solar hours due to an inverter issue. The decision on how to respond was hers.

“Leadership under pressure isn’t about having all the answers instantly. It’s about staying calm, making informed decisions with the data you have, and trusting your team,” she said.

Reflecting on her career, Baluyot said the experience taught her resilience, confidence, and the importance of listening and empowering others.

“Being a woman leading an entire plant means breaking expectations — both my own and those set by the industry — and proving that leadership is defined by capability, not gender. It’s about showing up every day with confidence, making tough decisions, and leading with both strength and empathy.”

Atty. Maan Ballesteros serves as MGEN’s Chief Legal Counsel and Corporate Governance and Compliance Officer. Her work spans contracts, regulatory strategy, and corporate governance across MGEN’s entire portfolio — thermal, natural gas, and renewables.

Her path to the role was not straightforward. Medicine had been the expectation growing up, but she chose differently — pursuing a direction that better fit her strengths.

Now her decisions carry weight across every segment of the company’s operations.

“Legal strategy doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and is rarely purely legal in nature. It means knowing when to ask for help, who to ask, being open to different perspectives, and aware of others’ strengths,” she said.

All three women describe their roles as part of a larger shift — not only within MGEN, but across the Philippine energy sector.

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