To sustain its hard-won progress, the Philippines must act on three fronts. First, protect the most vulnerable by expanding targeted social assistance, including temporarily broadening the 4Ps conditional cash transfer program to near-poor households. This will help prevent the energy price shock from pushing approximately 2 million Filipinos into poverty. Second, keep inflation under control without stalling the recovery. Third, restore investor confidence by resolving ambiguities in infrastructure governance and lowering the cost of doing business to reignite both public and private investment.
Looking ahead, bringing down the Philippines' electricity costs — among the highest in ASEAN — is a powerful lever to boost firm competitiveness and household living standards.
The report models a scenario in which renewable energy reaches 35 percent of the energy mix by 2030, consistent with government targets. This path, if undertaken alongside investments in transmission, storage, and grid flexibility and market competition reforms, could reduce residential electricity prices by as much as 28 percent in the near term, create approximately 161,000 new jobs, and lift around 730,000 Filipinos out of poverty.
Press Release Number 2027/011/EAP