Power co-ops pile up P13.5-billion debts

MANILA, Philippines – Electric cooperatives (ECs) have so far accumulated more than P13 billion in debts, putting consumers at risk of power outages.

Inefficient operations, wrong management practices and bad governance are hampering the operations of the provincial power distributors, the country’s energy chief said yesterday.

“The ECs have a debt of P13.477 billion as of June 30. One or two in Mindanao and three in Luzon are in danger of being disconnected,” said Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jose Rene Almendras.

Almendras said numerous ECs have refused to remit the payments of end-users to private power generators.

“We have been telling the ECs since day one, that the days of free electricity is not around anymore because there is no free electricity,” he said.

For instance, Albay Electric Cooperative Inc., which is undergoing a rehabilitation program, is in danger of being cut off from the grid.

Lanao del Sur Electric Cooperative Inc. is also an erring power distributor given its P3.3-billion debt, Almendras said.

In Mindanao alone, ECs have piled up P8.8 billion in obligations, he said.

“The problem is they delay the payments (to power generators),” Almendras said.

The DOE has observed that large donations of ECs, wrong investment decisions, bad corporate governance and free electricity to selected clients were driving the ECs to more debts.

Since last year, the DOE has been calling for reforms in ECs, which have been incurring debts with power generators the National Government had to deal with.