What Negros’ experience could mean for SOCOTECO II and SOCCSKSARGEN

As public discussions continue surrounding IGNITE Power’s proposed joint venture with South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II), many consumers across General Santos City, South Cotabato, and Sarangani are asking an important question:

Why would an electric cooperative enter a joint venture in the first place?

In Negros Occidental, that question became a reality.

Before entering into its Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) with Primelectric, Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO) was already facing worsening infrastructure issues, recurring outages, and financial limitations that made large-scale rehabilitation increasingly difficult.

According to CENECO Acting General Manager Atty. Arnel Lapore, the cooperative eventually reached a point where major reforms and outside investment became necessary.

“We need to rehabilitate the infrastructure, especially on the line maintenance.”

AGING FACILITIES CREATED A MAJOR PROBLEM

Lapore said many substations, power lines, and maintenance systems were already deteriorating.

These aging facilities required urgent rehabilitation to improve service reliability.

Without major upgrades, the cooperative faced growing operational strain.

DAILY BROWNOUTS FRUSTRATED CONSUMERS

Before the JVA, consumers reportedly experienced frequent power interruptions almost daily.

These outages affected customers in:

• Bacolod City
• Silay City
• Talisay City
• Bago City
• Murcia
• Don Salvador Benedicto

For many households and businesses, recurring brownouts became part of daily life.

LONG DELAYS FOR NEW CONNECTIONS

The cooperative also reportedly struggled to process new electrical service applications quickly.

Consumers experienced long queues and delays for new electrical connections.

LIMITED FUNDS RESTRICTED MAJOR UPGRADES

According to Lapore, infrastructure rehabilitation required substantial funding that the cooperative could no longer easily generate on its own.

Modern substations, upgraded distribution systems, and improved maintenance operations required major investments.

WHY A JOINT VENTURE WAS PURSUED

This eventually led CENECO to explore a partnership model with Primelectric.

The partnership was designed to bring:

• Capital investments
• Technical expertise
• Infrastructure rehabilitation
• Operational improvements

The goal was to stabilize electricity service and modernize the distribution network.

WHY THIS MATTERS TO SOCOTECO II

IGNITE Power is now citing the CENECO experience as it proposes a possible joint venture arrangement with SOCOTECO II.

Public discussions involving SOCOTECO II have similarly focused on recurring service issues, infrastructure needs, and long-term sustainability.

For many consumers in General Santos City, South Cotabato, and Sarangani, the larger question remains:

Could similar solutions eventually emerge in SOCCSKSARGEN?

THE BIGGER QUESTION FOR SOCCSKSARGEN

The experience of Central Negros Electric Cooperative offers one example of how an electric cooperative responded when operational challenges, aging infrastructure, and financial limitations reached a critical point.

Its eventual Joint Venture Agreement with Primelectric Holdings brought in private sector capital aimed at rehabilitating infrastructure, modernizing systems, and improving service reliability.

Primelectric also operates MORE Power, Negros Power, and Bohol Light and is backed by businessman Enrique Razon Jr., one of the Philippines’ wealthiest billionaires.

Today, similar conversations are unfolding in SOCCSKSARGEN as South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative faces growing public scrutiny over service reliability, modernization needs, and long-term sustainability.

While every electric cooperative faces its own unique realities, the CENECO experience highlights what can happen when infrastructure challenges remain unresolved for too long.

For consumers in General Santos City, South Cotabato, and Sarangani, the conversation may ultimately come down to one question:

What kind of power service do consumers want moving forward—and what solutions are they willing to consider to get there?

As discussions continue, many stakeholders believe the most important voices in that conversation should remain the consumers who rely on reliable and affordable electricity every single day.