Consumers warnedof higher power bill

CEBU, Philippines — Due to an increase in generation rate, consumers of the Visayan Electric Company could expect an increase in their bill for the June-July billing period.

Quennie Bronce, head of the Reputation Enhancement Department of Visayan Electric, said in an interview with radio station DYLA that the generation rate for the period increased up to P0.61/kilowatt hour (kWh).

“Ang katong time pag March and April, mao man sad to nga nisaka ang atong generation rate unya daghan kay ang nangreklamo nga taas kaayo ang ilang bill, posible sad ni mahitabo nga mosaka sad ang inyong bill,” she said.

She also advised the consumers to be conscious of their electric consumption, especially now that most people are working from home and some students attend online classes. One basic practice is to unplug appliances not in use and to turn off the lights when not needed.

The main reason why the generation rate increased, according to Bronce, is because the prices of coal and fuel have also increased.

“Naa man unta tay option nga kung mahal ang mga power generating plants, moadto unta ta sa WESM (Wholesale Electricity Spot Market), adto ta mopalit, pero mahal sad kaayo ang WESM. In fact karon ang pinakamahal gyud nga presyo sa WESM,” she said.

The WESM was created by virtue of Section 30 of the Republic Act No. 9139 of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. It is created to establish a competitive, efficient, transparent and reliable market for electricity.

“Although there are already solar power plants, dili man gyud kay siya stable kay magdepende man sa kainiton sa adlaw,” she added.

With the onset of the rainy season, the electric company has also requested residents to trim off their trees, especially those near the power lines, or request assistance from them to avoid emergency power outages. — Loreine Kyra Lebumfacil, CNU Comm Intern, GMR (FREEMAN)