I. Foreword
II. Location Map (Ilocos Norte)
III. Area Background
IV. INEC's Profile


Foreword [Back to Top]

Ilocos Norte is one of the pioneers of rural electrification in the Philippines. Endowed with abundant resources, the province easily became the showcase of rural electrification as it offered its willingness to become an attractive investment area in the northern part of the Philippines.

There was no doubt that the development strategies of the province included the electrification of the rural areas. Looking at the economies of its Asian neighbors, Ilocos Norte noted that the successful component of these countries’ progress is the attention they have given to their energy program which made them economic tigers. The concept of industrialization in these countries never glossed over the electrification program as a significant factor in attaining progress.

In like manner, the province recognized the contribution of total rural electrification in propping up its economy. In embracing the concept of rural electrification, the province became one of the prime movers of total electrification in the remote areas. Thus, the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative, the institution tasked to implement rural electrification, offered the prospect of making the province the gateway to Northern Luzon and the international community.

With its mandate, INEC laid the spadework of rural electrification and impressed upon the Ilocanos and the local leadership that in order to fully develop the potential of the province, they should support the rural electrification program.

This profile, therefore, presents the total component of INEC’s rural electrification program, its program thrusts, its struggles to make it viable and its financial and operational status.

We invite the readers and even investors to walk through with us and look at the success of our rural electrification program which is the Coop’s biggest legacy to the Filipino people, the Ilocanos in particular.

Location Map [Back to Top]



Area Background [Back to Top]

A. Geographical Characteristics

Ilocos Norte is located 463 kilometers north-northwest of Metro Manila. It occupies the area on the northwestern part of Northern Luzon. It is bounded by the provinces of Apayao and Cagayan on the east, Abra on the southeast, Ilocos Sur on the south and by the China Sea on the north and west. The province is sequestered by the mountains which run northwest and join the Cordilleras on the east. It has a total land area of 3,622 square kilometers composed of two cities and 21 municipalities which are further subdivided into 557 barangays. The terrain consists of large areas of rice paddies and steep mountains The province has two seasons: the dry season which runs from November to April and the wet season from May to October. Its climate has registered an average temperature of 26.8 Celsius (end 1997).

B. Socio-Economic Characteristics

As of 2000, the province has an estimated population of 514,241 and a population density of 151.2785 people per square kilometer. The people live mainly on agriculture, related industries, non agricultural industries and entrepreneurial activities. Statistics show labor force participation rate stood at 74.18 percent. Employment rate stood at 94.79 percent and underemployment rate stood at 43.5 percent owing to the largely seasonal agricultural economy of the province. Annual average per capita income (as of 2000) is registered at P34, 204.00.

INEC's Profile [Back to Top]

A. Brief History

The province of Ilocos Norte was never the same again after July 7, 1971. This is the historic day when the Articles of Incorporation of the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative, Inc. was signed which paved the way for the start of rural electrification program in the province as anchored under P.D. 269 by then Pres. Ferdinand R. Marcos. INEC was originally conceived to serve the eight eastern towns of the province as envisioned by the incorporators. Thus, the coop began its operation with an initial outlay of P15.3 million, a loan from the National Electrification Administration. The first General Manager was Col. Teodoro Apostol and the first President was Elficer T. Garcia. The first energization was launched in September 11, 1973 and the first General Annual Meeting was held in 1974 at Dingras. Under the stewardship of GM Oswaldo P. Parado, the coop expanded fast. In 1975, it bought the franchises of four private electric plants in Paoay, Bacarra, Currimao and Batac. In 1977, the coop took over the privately-owned Ilocos Norte Electric Company, thus, the electrification of the entire province was left at the hands of INEC. 1978 was a year of struggle for the coop. There was an acute shortage of construction materials and electrical hardwares needed for expansion. Pregnancy and marriage were a no-no to the employees during those times. Collection was made through bicycles and some consumers paid in kind – chicken, vegetables, rice, etc. However, house connection never stopped and even cynics were surprised to know that in a short period of time, at least 31,311 houses were lighted in September 1978. For this feat, INEC ranked third among the 121 electric cooperatives in the country as far as house connection rating was concerned. As of May, 2006, INEC’s service area covers the whole of Ilocos Norte which is composed of one city, 22 municipalities and 557 barangays with 116,742 house connections, ranked as Mega-Large Class A+ cooperative. For sure, there’s more to come brought about by the EPIRA Law. However, INEC is confident that with the continuing full support and concerted efforts of the member-consumers, officials and employees of INEC, there’s nothing that can stop us from pursuing our mission on rural electrification.

B. INEC Seal



C. Program Thrusts

OUR VISION

      - To be the preferred Distribution Utility in an open-access environment.

OUR MISSION

      - We are committed to our member-consumers to provide safe, reliable and efficient electric service at a reasonable cost through dedicated officers and employees.

OUR CORPORATE VALUES

      I Integrity

      N Nobility

      E Enthusiasm

      C Customer-focused


      L Loyalty

      I Industry

      G God-centered

      H Honesty

      T Teamwork

      S Sociability

OUR OBJECTIVES

1. Formulate investor friendly policies.
2. Reduce systems loss to a single digit.
3. Maintain 100 % collection efficiency.
4. Protect the welfare of the member-consumers and
5. Develop committed and productive employees.

OUR MOTTO

      - Kinapudno ti Pagrukudan

D. Status of Electrification

As of December 2009, INEC has energized all the 21 municipalities of Ilocos Norte including Laoag City and City of Batac posting a record of 100 percent energization of the province and 100 percent of the province’s 557 barangays. There are at least 125,966 members. Of the 120,408 house potential, 131,302 have house connections.

Municipality	Population	Members	House Connection	No. of Brgys.	Brgy. Energized	Street Light	% Energized
Adams	1,480	216	191	1	1	28	66.78
Bacarra	29,668	6,889	7,703	43	43	253	113.28
Badoc	27,862	6,428	6,143	31	31	463	97.66
Bangui	14,327	4,219	4,749	15	15	378	110.44
Banna	16,704	4,332	3,823	20	20	231	105.4
Batac City	47,682	11,478	12,028	43	43	872	112.94
Burgos	8,534	2,142	2,440	11	11	181	115.09
Carasi	1,154	231	178	3	3	12	77.73
Currimao	10,615	2,434	2,330	23	23	289	102.46
Dingras	33,310	8,868	8,377	31	31	568	113.13
Dumalneg	1,486	288	296	1	1	1	115.63
Laoag City	94,466	24,250	27,923	80	80	1,314	108.75
Marcos	15,154	3,627	3,435	13	13	139	104.95
Nueva Era	6,095	1,496	1,348	11	11	163	101.43
Pagudpud	19,315	4,696	4,790	16	16	220	117.69
Paoay	21,745	4,748	4,400	31	31	709	90.05
Pasuquin	24,739	6,452	6,423	33	33	27	115.73
Piddig	19,059	4,672	5,055	23	23	120	119.39
Pinili	15,903	3,197	3,295	25	25	394	97.08
San Nicolas	31,688	7,686	8,218	24	24	496	114.14
Sarrat	22,886	5,341	5,723	24	24	555	109.57
Solsona	21,338	4,969	4,965	22	22	219	107.61
Vintar	29,031	7,290	7,469	33	33	509	111.11
TOTAL	514,241	125,966	131,302	557	557	7,847	109.05

E. Status of Operation as of December, 2009

FINANCIAL

Member-Services

INEC is currently categorized as Mega Large Class A + by the National Electrification Administration. From the initial eight towns that it served, INEC’s area coverage, after 33 years of operation, now encompasses all of the 21 municipalities of the province and two cities. It has 11 members of the Board of Directors serving 11 districts province wide.

    DISTRICTS/BOARD OF DIRECTORS

District	Municipalities Covered	Directors
I	Pagudpud, Bangui , Burgos , Adams, Dumalneg	Dr. Diosdado I. Garvida
II	Bacarra, Pasuquin	Mr. Leonardo A. Velasco
III	Laaog City (North of the River)	Mr. Reynaldo M. Lazo
IV	Laoag City (South of the River) San Nicolas	Mr. Edisto Marlon P. Valdez
V	Batac	Atty. Jesus R. Nalupta, Sr.
VI	Paoay, Currimao	Ms. Hermila A. Carpio
VII	Badoc, Pinili	Mr. Virgilio M. Calajate
VIII	Sarrat , Vintar	Mr. Antonio A. Foronda Jr.
IX	Solsona, Piddig, Carasi	Mr. Benigno L. Aquino
X	Dingras
XI	Nueva Era, Marcos, Banna	Engr. Jhon G. Que

As part of the information drive of the cooperative, three (3) radio programs along with the three radio networks, DZJC, DZEA and DZVR were established. Printed materials such as posters, flyers and cooperative newsletter are also being provided to member-consumers to make them aware of the latest issues concerning the electricity industry. Likewise all applicants for electric service connections are required to undergo a Pre-Membership Orientation so that they will be aware of the policies of the coop and their rights and obligations as member-consumers.

Administrative Services

    MANAGEMENT STAFF

Name	Official Designation
Renato A. Balintec, P.E.E.	General Manager
Rosita A. Bumanglag	Finance Manager
Felino Herbert P. Agdigos, P.E.E.	Corporate Planning Manager
Clemencia B. Cariaga	Institutional Services Department Manager
Lindbergh S. Castillo	Technical Services Department Manager
Valentina P. Flora	Internal Audit Department Manager
Malcoln C. Parado	Zone I Manager
Aurora U. Bueno	Zone II Manager
Rodrigo R. Agliam	Zone III Manager
Angela R. Ramos	Zone IV Manager
Dionisio H. James	Zone V Manager
Daniel David R. Garcia	Mini-Hydro Power PLant Manager

From about 50 pioneering personnel, INEC currently employs 354. Trainings and seminars are continuously conducted to upgrade the skills of the employees especially in the light of the EPIRA Law.

TECHNICAL (AS OF DECEMBER 2009)
SYSTEM LOSS (KWH)	1,531,730
SYSTEM LOSS (%)	10.21%
KMS. OF LINES (AS OF DECEMBER 2009)
69 KV LINE	0.680
DC	8.955
3-PHASE	329.018
V-PHASE	60.341
1-PHASE	1,068.099
OS	1,519.928
UB	891.936
SD	2,283.251
SUB-STATION CAPACITY (MVA)
KW DEMAND	34,316
POWER FACTOR	99.40%
LOAD FACTOR	60.73%