ZAMCELCO Advances to B Rating in NEA Assessment, Signaling Improved Electricity Distribution and Governance

The Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative (ZAMCELCO) marked another milestone in its performance as it surpassed its previous rating in the annual assessment conducted by the National Electrification Administration (NEA).

ZAMCELCO’s rating rose from C in 2021 to B in 2022, indicating improvements in the quality of electricity distribution in Zamboanga City and institutional management within the cooperative.

The NEA’s rating system is based on multiple criteria, including institutional-governance parameters, financial parameters, technical parameters, level of electrification, and reportorial requirement. ZAMCELCO’s consistent improvements across these domains propelled the cooperative’s ascent to the B rating.

Rommel Agan, Chief Management Officer of ZAMCELCO, expressed his gratitude at the achievement, stating, “we’re thankful for this nod from the NEA, which further lets us know that ZAMCELCO is on the right track.”

The journey towards this milestone began when ZAMCELCO came under new management at the end of 2018. Since then, the cooperative has witnessed significant enhancements to its services, as reflected in the NEA’s ratings. From a rating of D in 2018 to C in 2019 and C again in 2021, ZAMCELCO’s progress has been consistently positive, culminating in the B rating in NEA’s 2022 assessment.

Despite the rising electricity demand in Zamboanga City, which grew from 539,902,082 kWh in 2018 to 609,425,759 kWh in 2022, ZAMCELCO’s new management has continued to uphold its commitment to superior service. The joint venture of Crown Investment Holdings Inc. and Desco Inc., which won the P2.5-billion investor-manager contract bid in 2018, played a crucial role in spearheading the cooperative’s revival, and enabled ZAMCELCO to operate efficiently to distribute power to its 125,000 billed customers.

ZAMCELCO’s management recently announced the cooperative’s “GetSET25 Zamboanga” campaign, seeking to meet rising demand for energy with stable electricity and economic rates for its consumers–and committed themselves to a deadline of 2025.

“The steady improvements to our services tie back to our vision of being an invaluable partner of the local government to develop Zamboanga City into one of the country’s most economically-competitive cities,” Agan shared, “and of course, to empower the communities we serve.”*