Group says power crisis not due to lack of supply

CEBU, Philippines - A consumers group yesterday said the worsening power crisis that is affecting Cebu and other parts of the country is not due to lack of power supply but because of the continuing implementation of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act.

Members of the Freedom from Death Coalition and their supporters yesterday picketed in front of the Energy Regulatory Commission-7 to denounce the EPIRA law. The same activity was being done simultaneously in different provinces as members of the House Committee on Energy met in Mindanao to discuss the aggravating problem on energy shortage in the region and all over.

 Aaron Pedrosa, secretary general of FDC, pointed out that the government is blaming climate change for the worsening scenario of energy deficiency when in fact the problem has been there for a long time already.

The EPIRA law provides for the privatization of all National Power Corporation power plants and power purchase agreements purposely to reduce power rates.

 However, Pedrosa said that the law has other effects that are more disadvantageous to the Filipinos as it resulted in the increase in power rates.

 “EPIRA is turning out to be ineffectual in breaking the wild swings of power shortage and excess capacity that have characterized the power sector for the longest times, and that made electricity increasingly expensive and less affordable and accessible to the people,” FDC said in a statement.

 The group said they have observed that in Visayas alone, unhampered establishment of power plants will eventually result in overcapacity even with the current average peak demand of 1200 megawatts.

 “EPIRA bars the government from investing in additional capacity in generation, transmission and distribution, except in situations where no private investments in new capacity were coming in. Because of EPIRA, the country still has one of the most expensive power rates in the world while service remains poor and unreliable,” FDC stressed.

 But ERC-Visayas chief Joel Bontuyan said that the EPIRA law has a lot of advantages and among them are the investments that have come in.

 “In that aspect it is very effective already,” said Bontuyan, explaining that consumers are already paying 80 percent for generation charge and without the EPIRA law, which assures incentives for investments, consumers would be greatly affected.

 With the shortage in power felt all over, especially in Mindanao, he said there is a need for more investments to come in.

For Visayas, particularly in Cebu, Bontuyan said that investments of new power supplies are enough for the next few years. According to studies, the supply would only be sufficient until the year 2016 and after which, there would be a need for additional capacity again. — AJ de la Torre/WAB    (FREEMAN NEWS)