The Department of Energy, in a strategic alliance with retail giant SM Supermalls, has officially launched a nationwide weekly energy conservation movement designed to protect the country’s power grid from the fallout of the volatile Middle East fuel crisis. Dubbed the O.N.E. Campaign, which stands for Oras Natin sa Efficiency, the initiative establishes a unified energy reduction window across the retail and commercial sectors. The rollout was marked by a symbolic dimming ceremony at the iconic SM Mall of Asia Globe, signaling a synchronized, multi-sectoral call to action for businesses, institutions, and residential households across the archipelago.
The emergency initiative serves as a direct domestic firewall against escalating tensions in the Middle East, which have triggered severe disruptions in global fuel shipping corridors and sparked a national energy emergency. With international oil and coal markets facing intense price volatility and supply uncertainties, the Philippine government is prioritizing demand-side management to avert sudden power outages and cushion consumers from astronomical generation charges. Energy Secretary Sharon S. Garin emphasized that national energy security is no longer an objective that the state can achieve through infrastructure investments alone, calling instead for collective civic discipline to stabilize the national power grid during peak utilization hours.
Under the institutional framework of the campaign, SM Supermalls has committed to systematically turning off non-essential lighting, exterior building illuminations, and secondary cooling systems across all of its properties nationwide every Saturday from 8:00 PM to 9:00 PM. This weekly one-hour conservation window is calculated to strip massive amounts of load from the grid at a time when weekend commercial traffic typically drives electricity demand to its highest levels. Government data from recent conservation exercises, including Earth Hour, proves that synchronized public reductions can instantly slash electricity demand by more than 145 megawatts, an amount equivalent to the output of a fully functioning mid-sized power plant.
The financial and operational proof of concept for this retail-led strategy has already been firmly established during the preliminary phases of the energy emergency. According to Department of Energy metrics, early conservation measures adopted by over 200 malls across the country succeeded in saving more than 51,000 megawatt-hours of electricity, generating roughly 614 million pesos in cumulative financial savings for the retail sector. SM Supermalls is integrating its campaign participation with its ongoing long-term sustainability layout, which includes accelerating structural transitions to energy-efficient LED fixtures, utilizing smart cooling mechanisms, and expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
To ensure the movement penetrates the residential sector, the Department of Energy is tapping prominent cultural, athletic, and media figures to champion the weekly energy-saving practices. Officials are urging Filipino families to participate every Saturday by shutting down non-essential home lighting, completely unplugging standby electronics, and adjusting necessary air conditioning units to a more efficient setting of 24 to 25 degrees Celsius. If comprehensive household compliance is achieved nationwide, the department projects an annual electricity saving of up to 6.56 gigawatts, a substantial reserve capable of securing power grid stability and protecting millions of Filipino homes from rolling seasonal blackouts.
with additional report: https://www.manilatimes.net/
