In her confirmation hearing before the Commission on Appointments’ Energy Committee on October 1, 2025, Energy Secretary Sharon Garin reaffirmed the Department of Energy’s (DOE) commitment to making electricity more affordable for Filipinos. 

“I’m hoping we can keep it down under PHP 10 per kWh,” Garin said, when asked by Sen. Panfilo Lacson on what she considers to be affordable electricity. She noted that current power rates average around PHP 13 kWh for Meralco and higher for far-flung areas.

“Most other countries are subsidized, [their rates] ranging from around [an equivalent of] PHP 11/kWh, depending on the country. Our electricity is not subsidized. In fact, it’s even taxed. Those are some of the issues that don’t give us a competitive advantage over other countries,” Garin said. 

Asked about tangible measures the Department is taking to lower electricity costs, Garin pointed to DOE simulations showing that successful execution of renewable energy projects in the pipeline could reduce rates by around PHP 2 per kWh by 2030. 

“Everything we do is for the lowering of power prices, be it implementation of all the [RE] projects, reviewing the ancillary which is really expensive in some areas.. line rental is also an issue. There are many factors we need to address piece by piece but the objective is to lower the price,” Garin said. 

The energy chief expressed the DOE’s commitment to interagency coordination, as well as support for proposed legislative measures such as long-overdue EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001) amendments and a bill proposing the removal of the 12% VAT on electricity to ease the burden on consumers.

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