United front against NPC rate hike urged
Friday, May 26, 2006
The largest Northern Luzon-based consumer group recently called for a "united front" among people’s organizations in the bid to block the latest planned generation rate hike by the National Power Corporation (Napocor).
The Timpuyog Mannalon Amianan issued the call in the wake of the petition filed last month by Napocor before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for rate increase. The petition seeks an additional R0.39 per kilowatthour increase for Luzon, P0.09 per kilowatt-hour for Visayas and P0.03 for Mindanao. The proposed hike is expected to rake in some P35 billion for the state-owned firm.
Timpuyog spokesman Melany Victoria said the impending rate hike "could cause further economic displacement due to industrial and business slowdown especially in the countryside."
Victoria also urged the National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms (Nasecore) to join the united front against the planned Napocor rate hike "in order to further strengthen the consumers’ position on the issue."
Victoria expressed hope that Nasecore would join consumers nationwide on this particular opposition. We understand that Nasecore has not been particularly aggressive against Napocor but we hope it would take the consumers’ side just this once, she added.
Victoria said the group is "optimistic that Nasecore would join the opposition to the Napocor petition in this particular instance since the implications of the planned rate hike to consumers are grim."
The group said the Napocor petition comes too close to the provisional rate hike authority given by ERC last year for an average P0.98 per kilowatthour increase. The group had earlier questioned the failure of Napocor to explain the details of the increase. The general excuse that Napocor needs to cover oil and other operating expenses is no longer acceptable, the group added.
The planned hike would also further underscore the fact that Napocor power, upon which most provinces are dependent, is more expensive than power supplied by independent producers, the group explained.
Timpuyog also called attention to the $ 400-million loan recently obtained by Napocor which were all guaranteed by the national government. The group said the loan is expected to further increase the contribution of the power generator to the national budget deficit.
The group recalled that the national government had already absorbed P200 billion of Napocor’s debts during the incumbency of former energy secretary Vincent Perez.
Perez "sweet-talked the public into accepting the debt absorption on the promise that Napocor will be privatized and that there would soon be an end to foreign borrowings and rate hikes," the group pointed out.
The group expressed concern that the continuing borrowings and rate hikes "could further stall the privatization of the ailing power firm."
The group urged Nasecore "to join the clamor for the speedy implementation of the Napocor privatization program". We are hope Nasecore realizes that only when Napocor is privatized will consumers truly have the power of choice and competition established in the power sector, the group added.
posted by philpower @ 9:06 AM,
1 Comments:
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At 11:36 PM,
said...
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Nice Blog. I wish you can catch all of the energy related news in the Philippines.