U.S. Embassy Photo Release
October 17, 2006

 

American-Philippine Partnership is Lighting Lives in Mindanao: 
$2 Million Donation to Electrify Remote Barangays

Thousands of Filipino citizens in Mindanao will improve their lives through the flick of a light switch, thanks to a donation from American company Mirant Phils Corporation and the work of a U.S. Government-sponsored program in providing electricity to remote Mindanao barangays.

In an October 16 ceremony witnessed by U.S. Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney, the Mirant Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Mirant Phils Corporation, donated $2 million to the Alliance for Mindanao Off-Grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) program, which provides electricity to remote barangays in Mindanao.  AMORE is co-sponsored and funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development through grantee Winrock International, the Philippine Department of Energy, government officials in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and other public and private partners

Pictured above at the ceremony are (L to R) Jose Leviste, Jr., Chairman, President and CEO of Mirant Phils Corporation; Congressman Joey Salceda; Secretary of Energy Raphael Lotilla; AMORE Chief of Party Tetchie Cruz-Capellan; Ambassador Kenney; and Daniel Moore, USAID.

Mirant has been a private partner of the AMORE program since 2002 and has contributed more than $4 million in funds to its electrification programs.  The $2 million donation given to Winrock International/AMORE on October 16 will be used to purchase solar panels and associated hardware for 150 barangays in rural Mindanao.  To date, the AMORE program has brought light to more than 7,000 households in 227 barangays using renewable energy systems. 

During her remarks, U.S. Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney commented on the profound difference electricity makes in how we live our lives.  “If you have electricity, students can learn more,” she said.  “They can study at night and connect to the Internet.  If you have electricity, you can have better production.  You can use power tools instead of hand tools and produce more products and better quality products to improve your economic level.  If you have electricity, you can have better health.  You can cook food and boil water more properly.  Bringing light to peoples’ lives makes a huge difference, and I hope the light we bring will be the light of progress, prosperity, and peace.”

Jose Leviste, Jr., Chairman, President and CEO of Mirant Phils Corporation, noted that it is important to support “programs that promote sustainable development in the countryside.”  Secretary of Energy Raphael Lotilla noted that for barangays lacking electricity, there is “a huge correlation to poverty.  We want to change that and can only do it with the help of everyone here and in the field.”

Also attending the October 16 ceremony were Bobby Calingo, Executive Director, Mirant Foundation and Undersecretary of Energy Melinda Ocampo.

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