Montevista, nestled about 100 kilometers north of Davao City, is a landlocked Davao de Oro municipality known for its sprawling agricultural fields, laid-back way of life, and resilient people. Over the years, it has steadily grown into a vital corridor that connects neighboring farming and mining districts.
Yet, beneath its unassuming rural surface, the volatile and costly power supply has become a common thread that dominates conversations among its residents.
As frustrations mount, chatter has grown louder regarding a potential new player coming in as Davao Light and Power Company seeks to expand its franchise area to cover the province after establishing its foothold in Davao del Norte.
The source of this hope is the passage of Republic Act 12144 in 2025, which expanded the franchise of Davao Light to include Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro, areas previously serviced by Northern Davao Electric Cooperative.
The prospect of this new lifeline created a stir among the Montevista residents.
Shopkeeper’s frustrations and hope
Talks about Davao Light possibly taking over the power distribution in Montevista have spread in hushed tones. One can easily glean it when you talk to everyone in town.
For instance, Zenaida Fernandez, 74, manager at a frozen meat shop, admits that she couldn’t contain her smile when she heard about it.
When asked about the rumors of Davao Light taking over Montevista’s power distribution, Zenaida couldn’t hide her enthusiasm.
She is well aware of Davao Light’s recent expansion into Tagum City, roughly 44 kilometers away. While 44 kilometers might seem significant, to long-suffering consumers, it represents a tangible move closer to Montevista compared to previous years.
Hers may be a tangled web of rationalization and won’t make sense to an outside observer. But hope does strange things, especially for residents tired of the current setup.
In fact, she was so excited for the interview to voice out her frustrations that she pulled out two chairs and said, “Sit down, it’s going to be a long story.”
Zenaida tends the frozen meat shop owned by her niece. Fortunately, she said they haven’t experienced any spoilage yet, as electricity always returns before the products thaw. Nevertheless, she resents the sudden, unannounced power interruptions that can damage their freezers and threaten their inventory.
“I’ve lived in Davao City for about four years when I was babysitting for my granddaughter,” she explained. “So, I am familiar with their service. I can hardly recall any long brownouts when I was there, probably once or twice. Plus, I knew my daughter did not pay that much compared to what we were paying here.”
In their last billing, in June, she said they paid more than P14,000, which she believed was excessive. “Our bill had plenty of charges that I don’t really understand. They charged us for everything,” she said.
“When I paid at their office just last week, I talked to some of the customers, and they were all complaining of the high electricity rates when they only had a few appliances,” she said. “I just listened, although I wanted to complain myself.”
For Zenaida, the arrival of a new utility provider cannot come soon enough. “So, when I heard that Davao Light may come here, all I could say to that is I am extremely happy,” she said.
Cautious optimism
Alyssa Opong, 34, a retail shop worker in Montevista, has been around. She grew up in Monkayo, Davao de Oro, before their family transferred to Nabunturan when she was 11. Now, she’s in Montevista for a little more than a month, along with her husband and their three kids. To say she’s familiar with Nordeco’s services is an understatement.
She recalls countless restless nights when she kept awake trying to fan her small kids using cut-up cardboard so they could sleep, or the power outages that came without warning. However, these occurred so often that they ended up becoming stitched into the daily lives of the residents.
“We just accepted them as part of our lives because it’s not like we have a choice,” she said.
When the conversation shifted to the possibility of Davao Light expanding into Montevista, her initial frustration turned into cautious optimism. She hopes a new provider might break the cycle of unpredictable rates.
“I don’t know anything about Davao Light. But why not? Let’s just try it. Maybe Davao Light can give better service and cheaper rates. We won’t really know until they come here,” she said, adding that it’s always good for consumers to have a choice.
The old normal
When asked about her thoughts on Davao Light possibly expanding its franchise coverage to Davao de Oro, including Montevista, Ronilyn F. Igsulan, 27, an ukay-ukay vendor, immediately complained that she paid P1,000 for her June billing.
“We are a family of three and only had an electric fan and two light bulbs, and we are not home for the entire day because of work, so I couldn’t understand why our electricity bill reached P1,000 when we were only paying half that,” she said.
For a family reliant on daily salaries, a sudden 100% surge in electricity costs understandably creates a financial strain. Despite her initial shock, Ronilyn did not even think to visit the local cooperative office to contest the bill—a reaction shared by many residents who feel the administrative hurdle yields little result.
“No, what’s the use in complaining?” she asserted. “Anyway, we just paid the amount, although it did affect our budget a little bit. Hopefully, our next bill won’t be as high.”
She expressed hope that Davao Light would live up to its reputation and actually improve the lives of Montevista residents. “And who knows? Maybe Davao Light won’t charge us with very high electricity rates,” she said.
While the residents of Montevista cling to hope, the legal reality is more complex. Nordeco has challenged the constitutionality of RA 12144 before the Supreme Court, allegedly due to the lack of consultation as well as the potential harm to its member-consumers. While the law allowed for a transition period of up to two years, progress has been slowed by the cooperative’s resistance to the handover.
For many Montevista residents, the issue ultimately comes down to quality of service. After years of limited options, they simply want a reliable grid that keeps the lights on, won’t cripple their small business with exorbitant rates, and allows families to sleep peacefully through the night.
