The National Electrification Administration (NEA) challenged its partner electric cooperatives (ECs) this week to approach their mission of electrifying the countryside with a renewed sense of commitment after their attendance at the 2025 PowerXchange convention in Atlanta, Georgia.
NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda delivered this message on Wednesday, 12 March 2025, during a Filipino night hosted by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), which organized the annual international conference.
“We have to put in our heart and mind that we are the gamechangers. You are the gamechangers. So please, let’s give it our best in doing what we are doing right now,” Administrator Almeda said in his speech addressed to Filipino delegates at the Georgia World Congress Center.
The NEA chief led the Philippine delegation, which includes EC general managers and officials of the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, Inc. (PHILRECA) headed by Atty. Janeene Depay-Colingan, at the international conference.
Administrator Almeda said he always looked forward to attending the NRECA convention to gain insights on the industry from a global standpoint. He announced his mission to transform the NEA and ECs among the key drivers of economic growth for the Philippines.
“The partnership of NEA and electric cooperatives should be at the front, back and center of nation building… The Philippines needs electric cooperatives,” the NEA chief said, encouraging all EC and rural electrification leaders to work even harder for their member-consumer-owners.
“I want all of you to internalize that… the present positions you’re occupying right now is no joke. It is not something you should take lightly… We are here because we are advocating not only total electrification, but reliable source of electricity,” he added.
Administrator Almeda acknowledged that this is a “tall order” for the ECs, considering budget constraints, but he advised the general managers to just “do your jobs” and leave the problem of generating fund sources with the NEA.
The NRECA PowerXchange 2025 gathered EC leaders across the globe to discuss and embrace challenges confronting the rural electrification sector amid an ever-evolving energy landscape marked by technological shifts, among other factors.###
