DAVAO CITY — Aboitiz-led Davao Light and Power Co. (DavaoLight) said that it is offering ₱1 billion to acquire the assets of Northern Davao Electric Cooperative (Nordeco) as part of its planned franchise expansion.

In an interview, DavaoLight President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Enriczar Tia explained that Republic Act (RA) No. 12144, which lapsed into law last April 6, entails that Nordeco is still allowed to operate in its franchise for two years. By then, DavaoLight had coordinated with the electric cooperative for the planned acquisition.

“In our initial offer, we have ₱1 billion… But that’s subject to, of course, the negotiation with Nordeco. But currently, that’s the letter that we offered… We still need to get all the data of their assets,” he said, noting that a transition period still has to be carried out.

Tia clarified that the franchise takeover is not “automatic,” noting that several aspects, including employment, service suppliers, and existing assets, will still need to be evaluated.

“We tried to coordinate with them to form a joint transition committee. Unfortunately, they are kind of [resistant]. In fact, they’re protesting the law by filing a case against it. But there’s a presumption of regularity of the law unless the Supreme Court (SC) rules. So, the law is in effect,” the DavaoLight executive added.

In May, Nordeco filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition with a prayer for a writ of preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order (TRO), arguing that RA 12144 is “unconstitutional” since it was enacted without proper consultation or giving the cooperative a chance to be heard by Congress.

The DavaoLight expansion, Tia explained, would address the persistent power rate concerns of consumers in Tagum City, Samal Island, and several areas in the provinces of Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro.

“Right now, I mentioned as of July, that's ₱9.20 per kilowatt-hour (kWh),” he said. “The customers will feel that reduction in their power rates because of the franchise expansion. So it’s going to adopt the DavaoLight rates. We want to turn around the experience of customers.”

According to Tia, Nordeco’s electricity rate ranges from ₱12 to ₱13 per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Meanwhile, Nordeco recorded an average generation cost of ₱8.6806 per kWh in September.

On power reliability, Tia emphasized that improvements will take time as aging assets still need to be rehabilitated. Nonetheless, he assured that emergency response teams will be on call 24/7.