Senator Win Gatchalian urged the government to hasten the development of microgrids which are necessary to the electrification of unserved and underserved areas nationwide. 

Gatchalian, who authored the Republic Act 11646, or the Microgrid Systems Act of 2022, also noted that microgrids serve as “critical infrastructure for the electrification of rural communities.”

“The Department of Energy should undertake steps to further expedite the development of microgrids to help propel the electrification of unserved and underserved areas,” he said. 

Citing the 2020 survey conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority,  Gatchalian said about 27.6 percent or 479,029 families in missionary areas remain lacking electricity supplies in their households.

In Luzon alone as of October 2023, he lamented the number of households without electricity in missionary areas was estimated at 211,743—accounting for 44 percent of the total unserved households in the country.

In the Mindanao region, the unserved households in missionary areas were estimated at 256,106, accounting for 53.5 percent.

An estimated 11,180 households or 2.33 percent of the total unserved households are residing in the Visayas region. 

Gatchalian pointed out that the development of microgrids also “bodes well with the development of renewable energy” in the country.

He noted that microgrids can easily absorb REs, such as those derived from solar, wind, and ocean.

“The DOE must persist in its efforts to advocate for the implementation of microgrids in areas that lack access to reliable power and are underserved,” he said.