Palace cites private sector support for Napocor solutions

President Arroyo recently cited the growing support among private sector groups for several moves planned by the government to resolve major issues confronting the country’s power generation sector.

Arroyo cited in particular the support aired by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), the Association of Securities Analysts of the Philippines (ASAP) and the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives (NAGMEC).

The groups earlier urged the President "to act swiftly and decisively on the planned rate adjustment for the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the proposed assumption by the National Government of some P500 billion in Napocor liabilities". The moves, the groups said, could hasten the privatization of the state-owned firm which, in turn, could help bring about more competitive power rates in the country.

NAGMEC, composed of the heads of the country’s rural electric cooperatives, said the implementation of solutions to Napocor problems "is an urgent matter that must be decisively dealt with". The speedy resolution of Napocor issues is crucial to the attainment of President Arroyo’s vision of electricity services to all the barangays in the country.

Under the Arroyo administration, 100 percent of the country’s 16,000 municipalities have already been energized. Some 90 percent of the total number of barangays and 60 percent of the total number of households in the country have also been given electricity. The number of energized households crossed the 50 percent threshold also under her first term.

The influential ASAP, meanwhile, said the proposed debt assumption "is long-overdue". The problem must not be allowed to fester any longer since it is seriously jeopardizing the vital privatization program for the country’s generation assets, the group said.

The debt assumption by the National Government "is good from the investor community viewpoint" since no one would touch a debt-ridden company, ASAP underscored. The group said investors "will look at Napocor as a ‘good buy’ once its books are cleaned up".

CCCI, on the other hand, said a swift action of the government on the issue is important "in order to guarantee the business communities of Cebu, and the nation as a whole, reliable, efficient and reasonably-priced supply of electricity".

CCCI president Robert Go said he is optimistic that "a visible effort to resolve the Napocor debt problem once and for all would bring about renewed energy in the various local business communities."

In response to the growing private sector support, the President directed Energy Secretary Vincent Perez Jr. and other energy officials "to ensure that all the necessary steps to pave the way for the eventual resolution of power generation issues are in place".

She has also directed Perez to ensure that the barangay energization program remains on track and is completed within the original timetable, which means 100 percent completion on or before 2010.