Amid the ongoing El Niño dry spell, local hydropower developers are urging the government to step up assistance and put in place clearer policies to speed up project rollout across the country.
Philhydro Association Inc. President Francis Joel Sayre noted that lower water levels during this period actually create a good window to advance construction work, even as the Department of Energy has cautioned that hotter weather could cut hydropower generation by as much as 40 percent, a figure still under review. Sayre explained that unlike solar and wind, hydropower does not benefit from large-scale cost efficiencies since every project is uniquely designed. He added the sector faces mounting pressures from global instability, rising costs and ongoing geopolitical tensions that have left many projects unfinished.
While the industry welcomed the DOE’s move to allocate 175 megawatts of run-of-river hydropower capacity in Mindanao under the seventh Green Energy Auction, targeted for completion from 2028 to 2031, more action is needed. Sayre is calling for similar auctions for Luzon and Visayas by 2027, plus separate bidding rounds for pumped-storage and dam-based hydropower within the next two years. He also urged the government to draw up a medium- to long-term hydropower development plan aligned with the Philippine Energy Plan 2023–2050, so investors can better plan ahead and match projects with available power supply agreements and incentives.
Sayre stressed that hydropower will be key to reaching the national goal of 35 percent renewable energy share by 2030 and 50 percent by 2050. As of July 2026, hydropower accounts for 3,876 megawatts or 12.1 percent of the country’s total installed capacity. Without timely policy backing and sustained government support, the sector may not be able to fully deliver on its critical role in the country’s clean energy transition.
