To aid the country’s goal towards 100% electrification of all households, the National Electrification Administration (NEA) and Cisco, a US-based digital communications company, sealed a partnership centered on developing a Digital Dashboard Command Center (DDCC).

The said partnership will be centered on the digital application tool that will enhance the operational capabilities of the power utilities nationwide, particularly the electric cooperatives (ECs) under the NEA. 

Through the application, performance data across electric cooperatives and other agencies will be gathered and integrated to determine key metrics to arrive at analysis and actionable insights. The identifiable metrics include total energy consumption, average power interruption frequency, and duration on a single geographic information system.

For the initial phase of the project, the dashboard at the Bengue Electric Cooperative (BENECO)  will be the pilot activity. 

Meanwhile, the second phase is set to happen in the second quarter of 2024 covering 60 ECs in the second phase. 

Primarily targeting the island-based ones, the remaining 60 ECs will join in 2025 under phase 3.

To manage the proper implementation of the project, NEA plans to connect its command center dashboard, the NEA Business Intelligence Technology (BIT), to the EC’s supervisory control and data acquisition systems.

Cisco Country Managing Director Zaza Soriano-Nicart said that electricity will continue to be in high demand due to the growing population across the country and industrialization. Thus, proper allocation is important.

Public-private partnerships are essential in delivering meaningful and sustained results, she added.

Currently, household electrification in the country is at 89% but is anticipated to improve through the DDCC’s deployment.

Cisco said they are utilizing its technology to create new opportunities, improve energy efficiency, and support the sustainable goals of the country.