DOE chief scored for high power rates in provinces

Rep. Ernesto Pablo slammed Energy Secretary Vince Perez for the government’s failure to reduce power rates in the provinces months after President Arroyo ordered a P0.30 reduction in the power purchases adjustments (PPA).

Unlike millions of electric consumers in the countrysides, Metro Manila power consumers started enjoying reduced rates since June. During her State of the Nation Address, the President took pride in saying that power rate reduction gave consumers a measure of relief.

But Pablo, representative of the party-list group Association of Philippine Electric Cooperatives (APEC), lamented that such "measure of relief" had not benefited provincial electric consumers.

"It is unconscionable when five million rural poor consumers are being made to pay over and above what they should be paying. As representative of electric cooperative consumers, I demand from Secretary Perez and the DOE to immediately implement the reduction," Pablo said.

Reduced rates should have been implemented nationwide as early as June after the President directed the National Power Corp. to lower power purchase adjustments by a uniform rate of P0.30, Pablo said. He said that electric cooperative consumers could have even enjoyed much bigger reductions had the DOE and its attached agencies implemented a provision under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act condoning all electric cooperatives’ loans related to power generation.

Under Section 60 of Republic Act 9136, all debts incurred by electric cooperatives to the National Electrification Administration shall be assumed by the newly formed Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management.