Consumers fear outages, higher rates as coop stays silent
DAVAO CITY (October 6) — The Davao Consumer Movement (DCM) slammed the Northern Davao Electric Cooperative (Nordeco) for failing to explain its suspension from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) after racking up nearly ₱380 million in unpaid bills — the biggest arrears in the country.
The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) suspended Nordeco effective September 25 after it failed to settle obligations that stood at ₱379.9 million as of August 31 and ₱337.6 million by September 26.
Nearly half of Nordeco’s supply came from WESM as of July, raising fears that the suspension could trigger rotational brownouts, steeper bills, and unreliable service in Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro.
“What is alarming is that Nordeco did not inform consumers… No clarification shows a lack of accountability, lack of transparency, and disrespect to the member-consumer owners,” DCM said.
The suspension adds to years of complaints against Nordeco, including frequent outages, high rates, and mismanagement. Several local governments earlier pushed to revoke its franchise.
DCM urged Nordeco to explain its arrears and payment plan, and called on the National Electrification Administration (NEA) and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to step in and secure power supply for affected consumers.
