President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed all national government agencies to use energy more efficiently amid the ongoing El Niño.

In Administrative Order No. 15 recently published in the Official Gazette, Marcos told the national government agencies, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, to implement the Government Energy Management Program immediately.

The goal of the government-wide GEMP program is to lower the government's monthly use of petroleum products and power by conserving fuel and energy, among other things.

"There is a need to intensify efficient utilization and conservation efforts of electricity and fuel to mitigate power demand amidst the ongoing El Niño phenomenon," Marcos said in his AO.

Marcos then gave the order for all government agencies to work together with random energy spot-checks and conduct energy audits from Certified Energy Auditors in order to expedite the implementation of GEMP.

Additionally, he mandated that they provide a list of all the energy-consuming devices they now have, like cars, heaters and lights, along with a schedule for replacing them with more energy-efficient models.

In addition, the agencies are expected to abide with the Philippine Green Building Code for both new construction and retrofits, as well as the DOE's Guidelines on Energy Conserving Design of Buildings.

They must also implement low-cost energy efficiency and conservation practices, like keeping air-conditioned areas at 24 degrees Celsius, shutting off lights and air conditioners when not in use, and turning on office equipment's sleep settings.

Marcos also instructed agencies to set up a system for tracking energy usage in their offices and institutionalize EEC in their particular spaces.