MBC joins clamor to shut down Napocor’s old power plants

The private sector has joined the bandwagon in Congress calling on the Arroyo administration to mothball or shut down some of the National Power Corp.’s old, costly, and rickety plants.

The influential Makati Business Club has expressed its satisfaction over and support for a Department of Energy policy of selective closure of dilapidated and inefficient Napocor generating plants.

The policy was laid down by Energy Secretary Vincent Perez before members of the MBC as part of a 10-point "power agenda’ to reduce electricity costs in the country.

"We like what we see. It shows they’ve (Energy officials) done a lot of thinking. They’ve been creative in their search for solutions… But the really sensible thing is that they are looking plant-by-plant to see what is cost-efficient, because these are the plants we need to go first, and probably these area the plants which will first go up for privatization eventually," MBC executive director Guillermo Luz said in reaction to the policy speech.

Earlier, senators crossed party lines in their call for the state-owned power utility to mothball some of its old generating plants and let the independent power producers do the job at cheaper rates and with less harm to the environment.

Lakas Sen. Renato Cayetano has submitted to Malacañang a proposal to mothball Napocor’s ageing plants and maximize the use of IPP’s generation facilities.

Cayetano, chairman of the Senate energy committee, said the move aims to completely erase Napocor’s share of the purchased power adjustment.

"The (Napocor) plants which would be mothballed will be selected based on their performance," Cayetano said, adding that Napocor’s power plants would remain closed until such time that robust demand for electricity returns.

His proposal jibes with that of the Manila Electric Co. as well as those of Opposition Senators Edgardo Angara (LDP) and Serge Osmena III (LP).

Angara earlier urged Napocor to put on stand-by the "low-performing, inefficient, expensive, and non-environment-friendly" power plants of the state-owned firm. The move would have the way for the full dispatch of two IPPs run by main power distributor Meralco to bring down electricity rates.

The temporary mothballing of the Napocor plants could help bring down the cost of power while at the same time preserve the assets for higher sale value in the near future, Angara added.