January 27, 2026
Last January 21, The Climate Reality Project Philippines held a one-day conference tackling pertinent issues surrounding renewable energy (RE) transition in the country, centering discussions around the DOE’s Green Energy Option Program (GEOP).
Held at Novotel Manila, the conference was entitled REalize 2026: Advancing a Renewable Energy Future through GEOP Research, Policy, and Market Insights.
Part of the program was Climate Reality Philippines’ launch of two resources borne from the organization’s work in promoting GEOP— a policy brief of the program and a study of its impacts on its end-users.
The organization’s Energy Program Lead, Pocholo Enriquez, presented the findings to an audience of energy stakeholders. These include private businesses, distribution utilities, and RE suppliers.
“What we really need to make sure is that GEOP can stand on its own as a market mechanism. [One that we don’t have to guide] along the way just to make sure it’s a viable product,” said Enriquez.
Also in attendance were officials from the Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Management Bureau, whose work involves managing GEOP and other voluntary RE policies and processes.
“We are here not just to improve our Green Energy Option Program, but also to help shape a power system that’s cleaner, more competitive, and more sustainable. Together, let us realize a future worthy of the next generation,” said Liza V. Pangilinan, Division Chief at the National Renewable Energy Board-Technical Services Management Division (NREB-TSMD) of DOE.
Established under the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 or RA 9513, GEOP is a voluntary market mechanism that empowers end-users to source clean energy directly from suppliers. The program also mandates that energy supplied to customers is 100% renewable.
GEOP and similar programs pushing for a local RE shift align with the government’s goal of reducing its emissions to combat climate change, given the Philippines’ grave vulnerability to its impacts.
Currently, emissions reduction is a key driver of investment, especially for businesses whose mother companies abroad have adopted sustainability as a core pillar. This, in addition to RE’s cost-effectiveness, has encouraged many businesses to consider shifting to cleaner energy through programs like GEOP.
Since its launch in December 2021, GEOP has garnered a total of 833 end-users. Last year, GEOP also recorded its biggest increase in users so far: in 2025, a total of 313 users were added to 2024’s 520.
Based on Climate Reality Philippines’ study, GEOP users’ electricity generation costs were on average 29% lower under the program (PHP 901,724) than their business-as-usual operations (PHP 1,269,042).
GEOP also demonstrates a high retention rate (97.7%) and sustained growth, highlighting its potential as a scalable and cost-effective renewable energy market mechanism.
Though these numbers are indeed promising, GEOP is by no means a perfect program. According to Climate Reality Philippines’ research, more work is needed to optimize the program’s implementation.
These include recommendations to address concerns on GEOP supply variability; streamline existing GEOP processes; and expand access through retail aggregation, among others
These findings were further supported by a study conducted by advocates from SUSTAINARUMBLE!, a public service media tackling discussions about challenges in sustainability.
SUSTAINARUMBLE! Co-founder Jonas Marie Dumdum presented to the conference their findings from conversations with a wide range of RE suppliers, whose concerns with GEOP’s implementation parallel those of the end-users.
“[When addressing the issues raised by our suppliers], we need to pin down three things: [the first is] better understanding of GEOP compared to all the other programs that the demand side may have. Second is not just to drum up RE supply, but ensure that there is reliable supply. The third is really more of what is in it for companies to switch to GEOP?” said Dumdum, who also works at the Nomura Research Institute as a Senior Consultant.
For its part, the DOE is very open to the recommendations presented in the conference, highlighting their drive to improve GEOP through more avenues like REalize 2026.
“The demand for clean energy is real and it is growing. So to support this momentum, the DOE has been revisiting and refining the GEOP rules. Last year, we held a series of public consultations to present major amendments, including eligibility criteria, the introduction of retain aggregation and more flexible provisions for a replacement power,” said Division Chief Pangilinan.
Alongside Climate Reality Philippines and other critical partners in RE promotion, the DOE-REMB has consulted with many stakeholders for ways to enhance GEOP’s reach and accessibility.
Expressed in the conference was the hope that these consultations would result in timely and crucial amendments to GEOP’s regulations.
“[You have to understand that all of the amendments proposed have trade-offs. That’s why we’re balancing the amendments.] I think the most urgent part is on the supplier side, particularly the [subject of volume-matching] because it’s really going to help us deal with the 24/7 variability issue,” said Engr. Jordan Ballaran, Senior Science Research Specialist at the DOE.
“The second [most urgent] is to create more incentives for our customers to open up the voluntary RE market—not just for GEOP but for the entire [range of] customer programs as well,” Engr. Ballaran added.
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