Proposal Code: 2022-05-B2-PCIEERD-HRDP-10640

DOST Form 3
NON-R&D PROJECT PROPOSAL
(Technology Transfer, S&T Promotion and Linkages, Policy Advocacy, Provision of S&T
Services, Human Resource Development and Capacity-Building)

I PROJECT PROFILE

(1) Program Title:

Project Title: Analyzing the Factors Affecting the Sustainability of Off-Grid Micro-hydro Power
(MHP) Community-Based Energy Systems (CESs) in the Cordillera Administrative Region: Socio-
Ecological Systems Perspective
(2) Project Leader/Sex: Andal, Emmanuel Genesis Tomagan / M
Implementing Agency: University of the Philippines Los Baños - College of Economics and
Management - Department of Economics
Address/Telephone/Fax/Email: Blk 4 Lot 14-A Ph B, Brgy. Mulawin Francisco Homes /
9174184160 / etandal@up.edu.ph

(3) COOPERATING AGENCY/IES

(4) SITE(S) OF IMPLEMENTATION

IMPLEMENTATION
COUNTRY REGION PROVINCE DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY BARANGAY
SITES NO.
CORDILLERA
LONE
1 Philippines ADMINISTRATIVE KALINGA BALBALAN Dao-angan
DISTRICT
REGION (CAR)

(5) PROEJCT DUATION:

Project Start Date: Jan 05, 2023

Project End Date: Jan 04, 2024

(6) TOTAL PROEJCT COST:

Year 1
Agency PS MOOE CO Total
DOST Funded
University of the Philippines Los Baños -
College of Economics and Management - 1,252,440.00 515,000.00 232,560.00 2,000,000.00
Department of Economics
Counterpart Fund
University of the Philippines Los Baños -
College of Economics and Management - 72,000.00 238,000.00 0.00 310,000.00
Department of Economics
Total 1,324,440.00 753,000.00 0.00 2,310,000.00
(7) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The desired outcome of the conduct proposed research is to address technology gaps that
negatively influence the incentives in the formation of CES-run off-grid MHP projects. The
following describes how this is done. First, a quantitative analysis that fleshes out the
technology gaps faced by CES-run off-grid MHP projects is conducted, specifically through score
indices constructed from the initial data and FGD responses. The latter is expected to include
the history of the formation of the CES-run MHP projects, the technology adopted for
harnessing renewable energy, the respective geographical features of the respective locations,
the socio-cultural context upon which the CES-run MHP project rose, the descriptions of the
CES-run MHP projects’ organizational forms and financing arrangements, the relationship
between the CES-run MHP projects’ organizational forms and financing arrangement to their
locations’ geographical features and socio-cultural context, the incentive structures in a
particular location for the formation of the respective CES-run MHP projects, the community
practices in starting and maintaining that CES-run MHP projects that correspond to the
respective incentives structures, and the difficulties faced by the CES-run MHP projects, and
how they relate to the community practices. The score indices meanwhile will then be mapped
to the related geographical features using Geographic Information System methods. Lastly,
general intervention guidelines based on market design methods for addressing the technology
gaps to maintain the sustainability of CES-run off-grid MHP projects based on the narrative
on the community practices just described.
(8) INTRODUCTION

The use of renewable energy (RE) favors the low-emission energy path which is vital in fulfilling
the country's emission reduction commitment under the Paris Agreement. In addition, the use
of indigenous RE sources also addresses the lack of access to electricity, particularly in the far-
flung off-grid areas. Unfulfilled energy needs in such areas hinder the communities from
performing the basic energy-derived services needed by the households such as cooking and
lighting. RE projects improve the lives of the households through cost savings from kerosene,
boosted income generation due to lighting, and improved health from reduced exposure to
wood and kerosene soot Lumampao et al. (2005).

A more specific RE system, a community-based energy system (CES), tends to rise from
grassroots efforts, and thus tends to be more suited to address the specific needs of the
communities from which they arise (Mancino and Thomas, 2005). CESs would then have
different institutional, geographical, and socio-cultural configurations, and are likely to have
different relationships with the technology adopted for harnessing RE and other aspects of the
economy.

The lack of access to electricity is being hindered by various factors including infrastructural,
geographical, socio-cultural, institutional, and economic constraints. The constraints that may
be specific to CESs and are apart from the conventional energy systems require a specific and
targeted analysis. Community-based approaches tend to commence in a grassroot, collective
and participatory manner. This implies that the resulting institutional forms of such community-
based approaches to energy initiatives therefore cater directly to the specific needs of the
communities from which they arise. The lack of a corresponding top-down approach through an
overarching public policy poses a significant challenge in strengthening the foundation of these
grassroots CESs.
RATIONALE/SIGNIFICANCE

The optimistic potential of micro-grid hydropower in increasing the accessibility of renewable

and micro-scale sources of electricity supports the need to analyze the factors affecting the
sustainability of off-grid MHP initiatives run by CESs. The need to prioritize this research area is
also supported in the Microgrid Renewable Energy R&D Roadmap which specifically targets an
outcome of having sustainable and capacitated microgrid renewable energy projects. The
Micro-hydro Power Program in the DOST Energy Roadmap also includes strategies such as
capacity building on micro-hydro site assessment/evaluation and capacity building on micro-
hydro operation and maintenance which are vital in attaining the sustainability of these off-grid
MHP initiatives run by CESs. More so, the strategic direction in the Philippine Energy Annual
Report 2017 highlights the promotion of basic electricity access for all Filipinos by 2022,
including those in the off-grid unelectrified rural areas.

Strengthening CESs is also directly aligned with the Sustainable Development Goal of
eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. Fulfilling the functional role of energy services (e.g.,
cooking and lighting) will enable the households to jump out of the poverty threshold (UNDP
2017). Furthermore, the use of renewable energy supports the Philippine Development Plan
(PDP) 2017-2022 strategies of ensuring ecological integrity and promoting access to basic
infrastructure such as electricity services.

However, the sheer number of off-grid MHP initiatives run by CESs in the Philippines makes it
difficult to cover them all in this study, impractical for a 12-month research project. Thus, the
research project must then be scaled down to the regional level, and CAR was chosen as the
focus of the study because it is the region with the most CES-run MHP initiatives in the country.
The following is a brief description of the MHPs:

Number Capacity (KW)

Abra 3 7.5-30
Apayao 5 1-2.4
Ifugao 15 0.04-5
Kalinga 15 1-50
Mt. Province 3 0.1-1.2

As shown in the brief description of MHPs, Kalinga has the greatest number of MHPs, tied with
Ifugao, and also the most diverse in terms of capacity. Furthermore, Kalinga specified as the
project site is for the case study. The quantitative aspect of the project still focuses on the
entirety of CAR.
OBJECTIVES

General:

The main objective of the research project is to identify key interventions to address
technology gaps that negatively influence the incentives for the formation and sustainability of
CES-run off-grid MHP projects in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).

Specific:
The specific objectives are to:

Describe the characteristics of CES-run off-grid MHP projects in CAR;

Determine the specific incentives structures in place in such areas that allowed for the
rise of such CES-run off-grid MHP projects in CAR;
Identify general key technology gaps that prevent ensuring the sustainability of such
CES-run off-grid MHP projects in CAR; and
Craft intervention guidelines that address such technology gaps for ensuring the
sustainability of off-grid MHP Community- Based Energy Systems in CAR based on the
corresponding narrative on the community practices determined.

METHODOLOGY

Description of the Study Site

The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) is the only land-locked administrative region found
in Luzon. It consists of seven provinces, 73 municipalities, and 1,176 barangays spanning over
its 18,294 square kilometers coverage area. It is also home to many indigenous groups,
collectively called as the Igorots (Department of Agriculture,2020). According to the Philippine
Statistics Authority (2021), CAR has over 1,797, 660 in population based on the 2020 census.

With its unique topography, CAR has been home to at least 61 MHPs, the greatest number of
micro-hydropower plants among the regions in the country (Department of Energy, 2021).

Preliminaries

There will be a preliminary roundtable discussion (RTD) with stakeholders, most prominently
CES-run MHP project participants. This RTD would likewise involve industry players, energy
experts, energy authorities and policymakers, and non-government organizations (NGOs) that
conducts Community Based RE system (CBRES) involved in developing and managing CES-run
off-grid MHP projects (e.g., SIBAT and Yamog). These NGOs are those specifically in different
communities, including: grid and off-grid, Geographically Isolated and Disadvantage Areas
(GIDA), Indigenous People and Protected Areas. These NGOs may have first account on
Community Organization/Organizing, Project Financing, Practices and Supply Chain. We will
also acknowledge DOE’s help in identifying relevant organizations, and request DOE to connect
us to these organizations. Along with insights to be obtained from the Inception Workshop
with PCIERRD, those obtained from this RTD will then be used further to improve the framing of
the objectives of this study and identify the most appropriate sources of primary and secondary
data.

The study will be done in two main phases. First is the characterization of MHP projects run by
CESs in the CAR, as guided by the insights obtained from the preliminary RTD and FGD. This
characterization will contain initial data of various CES-run off-grid MHP projects in CAR e.g.,
RE technology, absolute membership size, market share, etc., that is supposed to provide an
overview of the current general situation of MHP projects run by CESs. Second is the on-ground
community validation, which will give a more in-depth through surveys and case studies, but
will not be part of this project proposal, due to funding limitations.

Data collection

The study will collect technology profile, socio-economic, and geographic primary and
secondary data to be used for the characterization of identified CES-run off-grid MHP projects
in CAR. This will be done through FGD and surveys. The FGD and Survey instruments will probe
the practices of the respondent CESs on how they contribute to the sustainability of the CES-run
MHP project. Based on these, a survey and case study for a specific community will then be
rolled out for on-ground validation. However, due to funding limitations, the case study and
surveys will no longer be part of the proposed project at hand, but may be considered for future
research.

There will also be a collection of geospatial characteristics of the identified communities where
the selected MHP projects in CAR e.g., topography, location, etc. These geospatial data will be
used to generate maps to out the specific combinations of technological, geographical,
institutional, economic, and socio-cultural contexts of CES-run off-grid MHP projects.

Data processing and analysis

The responses in the FGD will be coded quantitatively using carefully constructed score indices
that capture the technological, infrastructural, geographical, socio-cultural, institutional, and
economic, characteristics describing the MHPs. The score indices from the FGD and KII should
provide a quantitative assessment of the sustainability of the respondent CES-run off-grid MHP
projects, which reflect the key technology gaps that prevent ensuring the sustainability of CES-
run off-grid MHP projects in CAR.

For future research, survey and case study may be considered to give a more in-depth
qualitative analysis relating to the socio-economic and cultural aspects of the community. This
will then be linked to the key technology gaps as reflected in the score indices.

The study will also use Geographic Information System (GIS) methods to produce mappings of
the score indices and relate them to their corresponding geographical characteristics. The
variables describing the characteristics of the MHP gathered from the respondents will be
superimposed on a map constructed from GIS data.

The technology gaps identified will then serve as basis for the general intervention guidelines
for ensuring the sustainability of CES-run off-grid MHP projects in CAR. The intervention
guidelines are formulated using market design methods. Here, incentive structures are designed
or redesigned using both economic theory and practical insights such that they better lead to
what are deemed as desirable outcomes for economic agents (Agrawal and Budish, 2021).
EXPECTED OUTPUTS (6Ps)

Publication:

At least 1 journal article

Patent/Intellectual Property:

N/A

Product:

N/A

People Service:

N/A

Place and Partnership:

N/A

Policy:

Intervention guidelines for ensuring the sustainability of off-grid MHP CESs in CAR

POTENIAL OUTCOMES

Strengthened institutionalization on providing technical assistance in proposing measures that

will improve the sustainability of existing and potential community-based energy systems
POTENIAL IMPACTS

Social Impact:

Strengthening of local partnerships among the MHP CESs stakeholders (local, private, and
government)

Economic Impact:
Improvement of the economic opportunities for the community where the MHPs are located;
and increased competitiveness of the MHP CES operators.

DISCUSSION

TARGET BENEFICIARIES

1. Communities where the micro-hydro powerplants (MHPs) are located, e.g., the respective
barangays;
2. Developers, managers and financial institutions involved in MHP operations;
3. Non-government organizations that conduct community-based renewable energy systems in
different communities, e.g., SIBAT, Yamog
4. Local government units within the existing and potential MHP CES vicinities, e.g., the
municipalities where the barangays with MHPs are located;
5. National government agencies involved in energy-related policy-making, e.g., DOE, DENR

SUSTAINABLITY PLAN

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT (GAD) SCORE: 10.33

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The implementing agency of the project will be the UPLB Department of Economics and will be
funded by the DOST-PCIEERD. DOST-PCIEERD will also monitor the progress of the
implementing agency based on the target output in the work plan. In the UPLB Department of
Economics internal monitoring, the Project Leader will ensure that the activities will be rolled
out as scheduled. The Project Leader will also be the responsible person in assuring that the
output components of the Project Staff are delivered in a timely and quality manner.