City wants to use P500 million VECO charged consumers

CEBU, Philippines -With many sitios in mountain barangays in the city still not having access to electricity, Councilor Sylvan Jakosalem yesterday sought for clear cut guidelines that would allow the city to make use of the close to P500 million the Visayan Electric Company has collected for consumers as universal missionary electrification charge.

Atty. Francis Juan of the Energy Regulatory Commission yesterday told the City Council the fund covers the “cost of operating in an area where income is lesser compared with the cost of generation.”

Juan said the city can actually ask the private provider such as VECO to apply for the Qualified Third Party Program where unlighted areas in the city can be identified as project beneficiary.

VECO has already collected P487 million as university missionary electrification charge since 2003 at P5.8 million per month. The fund then goes to the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management, the firm that manages the assets and liabilities of power companies.

Luisa Esteban of PSALM explained that from PSALM, the P.037 for every kilowatt hour collected as universal missionary electrification charge would be disbursed by the Small Power Utilities Group for identified projects by the Energy Regulatory Commission.

Esteban, however, admitted that she is not aware of any project being funded by the universal missionary electrification fund in Cebu City.

“I know of islands Camotes, Bantayan, Pilar and Kinatarkan, for there are no utilities servicing the area,” Esteban said.

She said a portion of the fund is being allocated as watershed fund for Visayas and Mindanao, which made Councilor Nestor Archival, chairman of the Council’s committee on environment and natural resources, to question why Cebu City’s own watershed has not been getting its own share.

Jakosalem said the fund can surely help the city’s electrification program for the mountain barangays.

Representatives of ERC, PSALM, and TransCo attended yesterday’s session to shed light on Jakosalem’s query but only after two invitations.

Juan advised that the city clarify with VECO the necessary steps in order to gain access of the fund in question. — Ferliza C. Contratista/JMO (THE FREEMAN)