Northern Davao Electric Cooperative
Northern Davao Electric Cooperative, Inc., also known as NORDECO, is an electric cooperative in the Philippines serving most of Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro.
History
Origin
NORDECO was established as the Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative, Inc. or DANECO on September 24, 1971 initially providing electricity to parts of the then-undivided Davao del Norte.2010s intra-cooperative dispute and renaming
A conflict between two factions within the electric cooperative started in 2012 due to accusations of mismanagement with consumers confused whether to pay their bills with a faction linked with the National Electrification Administration or the faction registered with the Cooperative Development Authority. The National Electrification Administration assumed control over the electric cooperative on March 1, 2017 through the activation of Task Force Duterte Northern Davao Power that was created to resolve its legal woes. During the task force's management of the electric cooperative, bill payment collection improved and its system loss was reduced from twenty-three percent of its total supply to between 15 and 17 percent. The electric cooperative was renamed from Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative to Northern Davao Electric Cooperative in 2019 with the two factions reconciling in the same year.Davao Light franchise expansion attempts
An attempt to expand the franchise area of the Davao Light and Power Company and subsequently replace NORDECO as the energy provider for Davao del Norte including the Island Garden City of Samal and Maco in Davao de Oro was initiated in 2020 when governor Edwin Jubahib of Davao del Norte along with its mayors delivered a letter to the cooperative's board requesting that they no longer be covered by the cooperative's service area. Such efforts were opposed by the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association as part of the latter's dissent against private entities aiming to expand the coverage of their respective franchises in areas already served by electric cooperatives. The attempted modification was approved during the 18th Congress but was vetoed by president Bongbong Marcos in July 2022 due to "legal and/or constitutional challenge due to the apparent overlap and possible infringement into the subsisting franchise, permits, and contracts previously granted to North Davao Electric Cooperative." The veto was lauded by the National Electrification Administration and the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association.After the July 2022 veto, subsequent bills to displace NORDECO as the energy supplier in Davao del Norte and parts of Davao de Oro in favor of Davao Light were filed in the House of Representatives during the 19th Congress. Three such bills arranged for the expansion of Davao Light's franchise to parts of Davao del Norte currently served by NORDECO and Maco in Davao de Oro while one bill only limited the coverage of such changes to the Island Garden City of Samal. House Bill 6740, introduced by representative Margarita Nograles and co-sponsored by representatives John Tracy Cagas, Ferdinand Alexander Marcos and Jurdin Jesus Romualdo, is supported by Davao Del Norte governor Edwin Jubahib. However, NORDECO through its lawyer Jeorge Rapista contest the proposed changes to its franchise area and warned that such moves could lead to a constitutional crisis.