P1.5-B biofuel-based power facility eyed in Pangasinan
(http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20071113108458.html)
By MELODY M. AGUIBA

A P1.5-billion Green Power Complex (GPC) is planned to be set up in Pangasinan where an integrated sweet sorghum and sweet potato biofuel-cogeneration plants will rise in about two years.


The First Biofuel Resources Corp. (FBRC) is now negotiating with venture capitalists, lenders, and potential equity investors for the terms of the investment or lending. FBRC also has varied financing options including one coming from certificate of emission reduction (CER).

"Our vision is to have a Green Power Complex that will provide cheaper power (and environment-friendly fuel) from renewable energy sources," said lawyer Eric Acuna, a former Pangasinan Congressman in an interview at a biofuel forum.

Acuna himself has started testing over the last two years the planting of sweet sorghum in his own 10-hectare land as he has been hoping to use it as ethanol feedstock.

FBRC may eventually encourage commercial planting of sweet sorghum in Palawan (7,000 hectares); Pangasinan (35,000 hectares); and Ilocos Norte (7,000 hectares). However, the company has to complete first negotiations on the investment on the sweet sorghum bioethanol-cogeneration plant.

The company already has an existing co-generation facility in Pangasinan which uses sweet potato (kamote) as feedstock in producing bio-methane. IT also produces starch from sweet potato which is now being used as a feed mix. This existing plant has required a P150-million investment.

But the long-term plan is to tap varied energy sources including sweet sorghum for biofuel and rice husks for biomass and other waste of these crops in order to maximize energy generation.

It is estimated that Pangasinan’s GPC may have the capacity to supply 45 megawatt of electricity to be supplied to the province and the national power grid.

FBRC Director Bernardo D. Tadeo said it will take one-and-a-half years to construct a sweet sorghum ethanol plant. If the company breaks ground in December, completion may come in the middle of 2009.

Acuna said the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is also providing for a significant capital for FBRC out of earnings from certificate of emission reduction (CER). The CER comes from the capture of methane to produce electricity or biogas from sweet potato’s waste.

The sweet potato cogeneration plant is estimated to produce 83,000 metric tons (MT) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emission reduction which is being sold by the company to a Canadian carbon trader.

"We just signed a contract with the buyer," said Acuna.

Moreover, the sweet potato co-generation plant has a multiple benefit with the production of flour used as substitute for feed.

"The CP (crude protein) content is not high. You would rather have corn. But since the price of corn is going up, feed-millers have been looking for a substitute to lower the cost of feeds," he said.

Kansai Electric eyes consortium with Marubeni Corp, First Gen (http://http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2007111340)
By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
Wednesday, November 14, 2007

ROME, Italy – Kansai Electric Power Co. Inc., Japan’s second largest power firm, is discussing the possibility of forming a consortium with Marubeni Corp. and First Gen Corp. to bid for the 175-megawatt (mw) Ambuklao-Binga hydroelectric power complex.

Kansai executive officer for international business and cooperation Hidehiko Yukawa, in an interview with Philippine media delegates at the sidelines of the 20th World Energy Council (WEC) Congress here, said they are in talks with the two power firms to aggressively bid for the hydropower assets.

“We have been talking with First Gen and Marubeni. We are trying to see if we can form a group to bid for Ambuklao-Binga,” Yukawa said.

The power complex consists of the 75-mw Ambuklao plant in Bokod, Benguet and the 100-mw Binga plant in Itogon, Benguet.

He said the company is also interested in bidding for other power facilities being privatized by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM).

“There are other plants that we are eyeing. We want to look at all the opportunities,” he said.

But Yukawa admitted that Kansai is particularly zeroing in on hydropower facilities. “Though we like to look at other opportunities, we are particularly interested in hydropower plants.”

Kansai’s wholly-owned subsidiary KPIC Netherlands B.V. has a 7.5-percent interest in San Roque Power Corp., the operator of a 345-mw hydropower plant in Pangasinan.

Founded in 1951, Kansai is a vertically integrated power company servicing more than 20 million residents in the Kansai region, covering such major cities as Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe and Nara, and the industrial area along the coast of Osaka Bay. Electricity consumption in these areas totals about 17 percent of total national consumption.

Kansai owns power generation plants and transmission lines and distributes electricity. In Japan, it owns and operates 145 hydropower, 18 fossil fuel and three nuclear plants, with a total installed capacity of 37,456 mw.

Gov’t says nuclear power isn’t a priority

Inquirer (here (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view_article.php?article_id=99317))
Last updated 04:21am (Mla time) 11/07/2007

MANILA, Philippines--The option to venture into nuclear power generation will serve as the government’s last resort, in case no new additional capacity comes in before a projected 2010-2011 critical period in Luzon, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said.



Isn't a priority? :wtf: They should start allocating resources (both cash and non-cash) for this. They have to establish good research facilities and train people starting today to build and maintain properly this kind of energy source in the future.

Yan ang problema kasi, paghindi pumutok hindi gagalaw. So it means they will address that solution when we are already very desperate.

Why dont they just focus in solar powered plants to power each villages and plazas, for commercial and residential usages. Im sure the philippines can find a way to install solar-powered roofs for houses or portable roof-mounted solar panels for each houses and other commercial and industrial establishments. It may not produce enough energy though for the bigger establishments...

^^ especially in dagupan, man they get a crap load sunlight there!

Suez-Tractebel plans several investments in RP power sector (http://http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=200711149)
By Ted P. Torres
Thursday, November 15, 2007

The acquisition of the 600-megawatt (mw) Calaca coal-fired power facility in Batangas is expected to jump-start investments by Belgian power giant Suez-Tractebel in the Philippine energy sector, a top company official said.

Suez Energy International chief executive officer Dirk Beeuwsaert said their $786.527 million bid for the Calaca facility is just the start of its exploration into the Philippine market.

“It will serve as a solid base for a further development of a diversified generation portfolio, including in geothermal and hydro, all of which show interesting potential in the Philippines,” Beeuwsaert said in a press statement.

“Our first investments here will result in improved performance and reliability of the Calaca installations,” he added.

The Calaca facility is Suez-Tractebel’s first investment in the Philippines.

Suez-Tractebel has long been interested in investing in the Philippine power industry but it is only through the Calaca power plant bidding that the company was able to enter the industry.

The Calaca power plant has two pulverized coal-fired generating units generating 300-megawatts (mw) of capacity each. The plant includes an offshore coal unloading jetty and unloading facilities.

Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) vice president Froilan Tampinco said in earlier interviews that Suez-Tractebel representatives were open to the idea of the power plant expansion.

Suez-Tractebel, Belgium’s top utility holding company and one of the world’s top independent power producers (IPPs), through its corporate vehicle, Calaca Holdco Inc. (CHI) was the highest bidder for the Calaca facility during the Oct. 16 bidding. CHI is owned by Suez-Tractebel through its wholly-owned subsidiary Belgelectric Finance B.V.

PSALM president Jose Ibazeta said the agency has other “deliverables to accomplish” before the notice of award can be given to Suez-Tractebel. “We are expecting the 40-percent down payment for Calaca. They actually have an option to close earlier.”

With the strong investor interest for Calaca, Ibazeta said he is optimistic that they can hit the 50-percent privatization target by the end of the year. Total privatization proceeds are estimated to reach $800 million for the whole year, excluding proceeds from the bidding of the 25-year concession contract of the National Transmission Corp.

Of the 31 plants of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) identified for privatization, 10 plants have already been disposed, equivalent to 1,680.5 mw operating capacity, or 38.76 percent of the 4,335.70-mw aggregate capacity of all generating plants in Luzon and the Visayas.

Also in the auction block are the 192.5-mw Palinpinon Geothermal and 146.5-mw Panay diesel power plants by Dec. 5. It is also bidding out the 175-mw Ambuklao-Binga hydroelectric power in Benguet and the Manila thermal power facilities.

Blackout hits Cebu, Negros, Panay after power plant trips


By Carla Gomez, Jhunnex Napallacan
Visayas Bureau
Last updated 06:27pm (Mla time) 11/15/2007


CEBU CITY, Philippines -- The blackout that hit the islands of Cebu, Negros and Panay late Thursday afternoon resulted in snarled traffic in Metro Cebu and schools decided to send their students home.

The blackout hit the islands of Negros, Cebu and Panay past 4 p.m. Thursday after the 340-megawatt geothermal power plant in Leyte tripped, said Zosimo Briones, National Transmission Company (Transco) Bacolod general manager.

Briones said the 340-megawatt geothermal power plant in Leyte tripped at about 4:30, causing power plants in the three islands to overload and shut down.

He said work was being done to start up Palinpinon 1 and 2 in Negros Oriental to restore power to Negros Island.

The Visayan Electric Company (Veco), the private electric utility serving the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and five municipalities in Metro Cebu, relied only on the 60 megawatts supplied by the Cebu Private Power Corp., way below the 310 megawatts total requirement.

Veco spokesperson Ethel Natera said there was a problem with Transco’s submarine cable.

Transco-Cebu spokesman Ben Ypil confirmed that the submarine cable that supplies power from Leyte Geothermal power plants to Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) grid was down at past 4 p.m.

Ypil said he learned that the submarine cable was restored at 4:46 p.m. Thursday. Power was restored in some areas.

The Transco also supplies power to Mactan Electric Company, Cebu Electric Cooperative 1 and 2 although the Mactan Economic Zone gets their power supply from East Asia Utilities Corp.

As of this posting, Veco reported that they restored power to about 90 percent of its franchise area at 5:40 p.m.

Aboitiz Power, Taiwan firm to build $ 420-M coal-fed plant
(http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20071118108954.html)

Aboitiz Power Corporation has formed a joint venture with state-run Taiwan Cogeneration Corp. to build a $ 420-million 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant next year, a top company official said on Friday.


The project is aimed at partly addressing a projected power supply shortage of 1,950 MW on the main island of Luzon.

"If no new plants are built, there will be a power shortage by 2011," Luis Miguel Aboitiz, vice president of Aboitiz Power, told Reuters.

Despite the government’s goal of raising the country’s reliance on biofuels sourced from locally-produced plants and oils, the Philippines is increasingly turning to coal to meet its power needs.

Earlier this week, the power unit of the Philippines’ largest bank, Metropolitan Bank & Trust, signed two deals worth $ 500 million with Taiwan’s Formosa Heavy Industries to build coal-fired power plants in the centre of the archipelago.

Another group, GN Power Ltd. Co., a joint venture between US and Nauru investor groups, is currently building a 600-MW clean coal power plant worth $ 822 million in northwestern Bataan province and hopes to operate the facility by 2010.

The Aboitiz-Taiwan Cogeneration joint venture firm, called Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc., plans to double the new power plant’s capacity to 600 MW about three years after the first phase of the project is completed by 2011.

Aboitiz said the company plans to raise equity and debt to fund the first phase of the power plant to be built in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone north of the capital, formerly the biggest US military base outside the United States.

Aboitiz Power, the Philippines’ biggest IPO this year, bought the country’s largest hydropower plant — the 360-megawatt Magat — for $ 530 million last year. It plans to bid for a 60 percent stake in geothermal firm PNOC-Energy Development Corp. which the government is selling on Nov. 21.

On Wednesday, Aboitiz Power Corporation signed the deed of assignment to complete its purchase from Evonik Industries AG a 34 percent share in its Philippines special purpose company STEAG State Power Inc. for $ 91.9 million.

Evonik remains the majority shareholder of STEAG State Power Inc. with its indirectly held 55 percent share while another 11 percent share in the company is held by the local project partner State Investment Trust Inc.

"We are continuing our strategy of reducing our shares in our foreign coal-fired power plants to not less than 51 percent and running the special purpose companies jointly with local partners," said Dr. Alfred Tacke, Member of the Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG with responsibility for Energy.

AP president Erramon Aboitiz said that "the investment is very strategic for Aboitiz Power. Aside from the expansion potential, the Evonik power plant is mitigating a shortage of power supply and improving the reliability of power in Mindanao. We have been providing Mindanao power for over 70 years."

Aboitiz Power’s distribution utilities in Mindanao include Davao Light & Power Company, which is the largest distribution in Mindanao, and Cotabato Light & Power Company.

AP operates a hydro facility in Davao and has investments in various generation assets in Mindanao, which include Western Mindanao Power Corp in Zamboanga and Southern Philippines Power Corp in General Santos.

"We are very committed to Mindanao. Our subsidiary, HEDCOR, is building 72 MW of run-of-river hydro in Davao, which should be operational in 2009," Aboitiz said.

Utilities to abandon RORB scheme

By Abigail L. Ho (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view_article.php?article_id=101682)
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines--THE ENERGY Regulatory Commission has unveiled a new timeline for the conversion of more private distribution utilities into the performance-based rate-making (PBR) method of computing how much these firms charge their customers.

The new regime veers away from the decades-old return on rate base (RORB) scheme used at present.

Under the new timeline, the regulatory period for first entrants Manila Electric Co., Dagupan Electric Corp., and Cagayan Electric Power and Light Co. Inc. started last July 1 and would end on June 30, 2011.

The second group--composed of Cotabato Light and Power Corp., Iligan Light and Power Inc., and Mactan Electric Co.--would come under the PBR regime for the first time on April 1, 2009 up to March 30, 2013.

Cabanatuan Electric Corp., La Union Electric Co. Inc., Tarlac Electric Inc., Visayan Electric Co. Inc., Ibaan Electric and Engineering Corp., and Davao Light and Power Co. Inc. formed the third group entering the PBR regime, with their initial regulatory period spanning July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2014.

Making up the fourth entrant group, with an initial regulatory period of April 1, 2011 to March 2015, are Panay Electric Co. Inc., Subic Enerzone Corp., San Fernando Electric Light and Power Co., Bohol Light Co. Inc., and Angeles Electric Corp.

The PBR methodology replaces the 80-year-old RORB scheme that is used to determine the maximum rate that utilities could charge their customers.

The new rate-setting scheme uses incentives to motivate firms to reduce their costs and improve the efficiency of their operations.

As it is incentive-based, the PBR methodology is expected to result in lower electricity rates, more efficient delivery of service to customers and optimal use of a firm's assets.

Iceland energy firm eyeing 100-MW Leyte geothermal plant
(http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20071120109134.html)

Reykjavik Energy Invest (REI) of Iceland is hoping to develop a 100 megawatt geothermal power facility in Biliran, Leyte as part of its overseas expansion program.


REI said it tendered a bid with the Department of Energy for exploration rights of the Biliran geothermal field in response to the DoE request for proposals on geothermal geenfield projects.

REI and Geysir Green Energy (GGE) signed a deal with Filtech Energy Drilling Corporation (FEDCO) in July to bolster their application for a service contract on the Biliran geothermal field.

"We were the only applicant for this area. After undergoing full evaluation of the application, DoE found our application in good order and we received a check mark for the legal, technical and financial categories," REI said.

The company said they have prepared the establishment of a new company with 60 percent FEDCO ownership to comply with the 60-40 national requirement under the Constitution. The remaining 40 percent stake will be held by REI and GGE.

"Work on the establishment of the Philippine company with FEDCO is already under way. This will be a new joint venture company and is to be established in the Philippines by the three parties," the company said.

REI is Reykjavik Energy’s international business development and investment arm. REI invests in geothermal exploitation rights as well as site development, construction and operation of geothermal fields, and seeks to acquire geothermal plants currently in operation.

Reykjavik Energy is one of the world’s leading authorities in the utilization of geothermal energy. The company supplies a large portion of the Icelandic population with geothermal water for domestic heating and is gradually developing new steam fields for power production.

REI is also the partner of First Gen Corporation vying for the government’s 60 percent stake in PNOC-Energy Development Corporation. Bidding for the majority stake in the country’s largest geothermal producer is scheduled on Wednesday at the Development Bank of the Philippines. (JAL)

Group led by Lopez firm wins bid for‘crown jewel’ (http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/nov/22/yehey/top_stories/20071122top4.html)

By Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo Reporter

THE consortium led by First Gen Corp. posted the highest bid for the government’s remaining stake in the country’s largest geothermal energy producer.

Red Vulcan Holdings Corp., the joint venture among First Gen, The Netherlands-based Spalmare Holdings B.V. and Prime Terracota Holdings Corp., tendered an offer of P58.5 billion in an auction held by state-owned Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) Wednesday for 60 percent of PNOC-Energy Development Corp. (PNOC-EDC) shares.

“We believe in this company,” said Francis Giles Puno, First Gen senior vice-president and corporate finance officer. “We are extremely pleased having won this transaction. Of course we will have to go through the process. But this certainly is something that we feel is very important for our company.”

He disclosed that the group valued PNOC-Energy Development Corp. at P9.75 per share.

Puno said the group has lined up the financing for the transaction, $300 million of which will come from internally generated funds and bank borrowings.

Financial closing for the sale of the controlling stake in the geothermal energy producer is expected in a week.

Red Vulcan’s bid bested the offers of three other groups that include FDC Geo-Energy Holdings Inc. (Filinvest Development Corp. and Int’l Power Masinloc Holdings Inc.) with P48.53 billion; Panasia Energy Holdings Inc. (San Miguel Energy Corp. and Beleggingsmaatchappij Broem B.V.) with P39 billion; and AP Renewables (Aboitiz Power Corp.) with P33.1 billion.

Red Vulcan’s bid is way above the reserve price set by PNOC at P45 billion.

“The bidding is a reflection of the interest in PNOC-EDC. As a commercial entity it has reached its apex such that its commercial value today is at its highest,” Antonio Cailao, PNOC president, said.

He added that the government, which is banking on the privatization proceeds to narrow its budget deficit, may stand to get “at least 50 percent” of the revenues from the sale of PNOC-Energy Development Corp.

That company, which is also the second largest in the world, operates in Luzon, Mindanao and Leyte and Negros in the Visayas, with a total installed capacity of nearly 1,150 megawatts.

Cailao said the company’s sale comes at an opportune time for the government in light of the strong interest from the investors as well as a projected power crunch in the near future “at which time we will not be able to fetch this kind of price.”

“It is not merely selling a crown jewel,” Cailao added. “It’s selling at a right time because if we don’t we will lose [the opportunity] to optimize that value. This is the best time to sell it, selling it later we will not get the same amount.”

PNOC plans geothermal project
(http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20071201110255.html)
By MYRNA M. VELASCO

State-run Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) is poised to compete with the buyer of its equity in the PNOC-Energy Development Corporation (PNOC-EDC) the Red Vulcan Holdings Corporation — as it bared plans to venture anew into geothermal exploration and development ventures.


PNOC president Antonio M. Cailao said the transaction document in the PNOC-EDC privatization "did not give a ‘no compete clause’, so we can go into geothermal later."

The corporate vehicle they will use in new geothermal ventures would be the newly-created PNOC Renewables Energy Corporation, which they plan to activate for such new sets of investments.

"We have recently established a renewable energy company and we can go into that, and not that we will go there immediately, but we are not shutting the door. We are reviving it," he said.

as good as the solar power advantages are, we still cannot afford to install it on a massive scale.. majority of consumers can't even afford the solar panel.. but the government should mandate that buildings which consume too much electricity must install solar panels to get the electricity back to the grid.. like BPO buildings, some operates 24/7...

i thought then that nuclear power will be good for the country, maybe yes.. however we do not have infrastructure to support it such as toxic waste disposals.. if cold fusion can be validated and duplicated, then that will be a better option for the Philippines.. and its going to be cheaper and cleaner too.. hope they discover how it work fast..

Cagayan Electric Power & Light Co., Inc.
1 MW Photovoltaic Plant
Indahag, Cagayan de Oro City

Largest Grid-Connected Solar Power Plant in the Developing World

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/solar1.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/solar2.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/solar3.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/solar4.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/solar5.jpg

wow, meron na pala.. my bad..

haha. that's awesome. 1 megawatt, doesn't sound like a lot though does it.. how much households does that equate to

Alcantara-owned power unit inks coal supply deal with Sultan Energy

By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
Monday, December 3, 2007
The Philippine Star

Alcantara-owned Conal Holdings Corp. (CHC) and Sultan Energy Philippines Corp. (SEPC) have inked a 25-year coal supply agreement for the former’s coal-fired power plant in Mindanao.

With the deal, CHC, a 60-40 joint venture between the Alcantara group’s Alsons Consolidated Corp. and Egco International, a unit of Thailand’s biggest power producer, secures a stable source of local coal for the fuel requirements of its power plant which will have an initial capacity of 200 megawatts, expandable up to 900 megawatts.

CHC will be designing the boilers of its power plant specifically to burn the type and quality of coal to be extracted from SEPC’s mine site.

The agreement will also affirm the viability of the use of local coal as fuel for power plants. There is now an emerging trend wherein smaller power plants and industrial users have shifted their fuel requirements from the more expensive diesel and bunker fuel to local coal.

SEPC is aggressively undertaking coal reserve definition with four drilling rigs at its Lake Sebu, South Cotabato mine site where it has an existing coal operating contract with the Department of Energy.

Coal deposits in the Cotabato basin, the newest frontier area in coal, have the potential for coal resources that are as big as or even bigger than Semirara, on the basis of surface indications.

Sultan Energy, the largest concession holder in the area, has recently resumed drilling and is substantially expanding its exploration activities to determine the full extent of its coal resources.

Surface indications and initial drilling activities covering just 35 percent of its property has already led to the identification of at least 211 million metric tons of coal resource—indicating that there is more than enough coal for the CHC plant as well as other greenfield plants that may be put up in the next five years.

CHC will provide P50 million as an advance to SEPC for supplementary funding in case it is needed by SEPC for its exploration and development activities in the coal site.

CHC will buy the coal extracted from the site by SEPC at the contracted amount of 700,000 metric tons of coal a year for 25 years starting from the commercial operation of its power plant anytime between Nov. 30, 2011 and Dec. 31, 2012.

SEPC will supply coal at a price indexed on international coal and freight prices with the actual price formula to be made part to the definitive coal supply and purchase agreement to be mutually agreed upon by the parties.

The agreement also provides for the supply of additional coal in the event of higher coal requirements of the CHC power plant once it expands. Projected demand is seen to rise to two million tons a year by 2014 and up to three million tons once capacity reaches 900 mw.

As part of the agreement, CHC will build and maintain a coal conveyance system from the coal site to the power plant as well as a pier with a port facility which Sultan Energy can use to ship coal to other buyers.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2007120254

we already have a similar thread:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=187849

^^ Thanks. Mods please merge this one with the preexisting thread.

Alcantara-owned power unit inks coal supply deal with Sultan Energy

By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
Monday, December 3, 2007
The Philippine Star

Alcantara-owned Conal Holdings Corp. (CHC) and Sultan Energy Philippines Corp. (SEPC) have inked a 25-year coal supply agreement for the former’s coal-fired power plant in Mindanao.

With the deal, CHC, a 60-40 joint venture between the Alcantara group’s Alsons Consolidated Corp. and Egco International, a unit of Thailand’s biggest power producer, secures a stable source of local coal for the fuel requirements of its power plant which will have an initial capacity of 200 megawatts, expandable up to 900 megawatts.

CHC will be designing the boilers of its power plant specifically to burn the type and quality of coal to be extracted from SEPC’s mine site.

The agreement will also affirm the viability of the use of local coal as fuel for power plants. There is now an emerging trend wherein smaller power plants and industrial users have shifted their fuel requirements from the more expensive diesel and bunker fuel to local coal.

SEPC is aggressively undertaking coal reserve definition with four drilling rigs at its Lake Sebu, South Cotabato mine site where it has an existing coal operating contract with the Department of Energy.

Coal deposits in the Cotabato basin, the newest frontier area in coal, have the potential for coal resources that are as big as or even bigger than Semirara, on the basis of surface indications.

Sultan Energy, the largest concession holder in the area, has recently resumed drilling and is substantially expanding its exploration activities to determine the full extent of its coal resources.

Surface indications and initial drilling activities covering just 35 percent of its property has already led to the identification of at least 211 million metric tons of coal resource—indicating that there is more than enough coal for the CHC plant as well as other greenfield plants that may be put up in the next five years.

CHC will provide P50 million as an advance to SEPC for supplementary funding in case it is needed by SEPC for its exploration and development activities in the coal site.

CHC will buy the coal extracted from the site by SEPC at the contracted amount of 700,000 metric tons of coal a year for 25 years starting from the commercial operation of its power plant anytime between Nov. 30, 2011 and Dec. 31, 2012.

SEPC will supply coal at a price indexed on international coal and freight prices with the actual price formula to be made part to the definitive coal supply and purchase agreement to be mutually agreed upon by the parties.

The agreement also provides for the supply of additional coal in the event of higher coal requirements of the CHC power plant once it expands. Projected demand is seen to rise to two million tons a year by 2014 and up to three million tons once capacity reaches 900 mw.

As part of the agreement, CHC will build and maintain a coal conveyance system from the coal site to the power plant as well as a pier with a port facility which Sultan Energy can use to ship coal to other buyers.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2007120254

:)

haha. that's awesome. 1 megawatt, doesn't sound like a lot though does it.. how much households does that equate to

based on average Filpino Family energy consumption, around 800 households...:cheers:

wow.. at least 800 household is not bad... its better than nuclear, in the sense that we cannot actually handle that technology and its byproducts..

MADRID (Thomson Financial) - Spain and the Philippines signed cooperation agreements Monday at the start of a visit by Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, including one covering the alternative fuel sector.

'We have reduced our dependence on imported oil, so this agreement on renewable energy is very important to us, especially since Spain is the leader in solar and wind energy,' said Philippine Foreign Minister Alberto Romulo.

Earlier this year, Arroyo signed the country's biofuels act, which aims to ease the country's dependence on imported petroleum products by requiring the mandatory use of biodiesel or ethanol and providing incentives to business groups engaged in biofuel production.

Romulo also signed cooperation deals with his Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos covering agriculture and fisheries, education, sports and culture.

In the education field, the two countries 'agreed to assist each other in the teaching of the Spanish language,' he told a news conference.

The deals came on the first day of a three-day visit to Spain by Arroyo, the first by a leader of the Philippines since her father Diosdado Macagapal came in 1962, that is expected to focus on economic cooperation.

The Philippines was a Spanish colony from 1565 to 1898.

On Monday, she met with King Juan Carlos following her arrival on the first leg of a seven-day European tour that will take her to Paris and London.

She is scheduled to meet Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on Tuesday.

The tour comes just four days after a short-lived rebellion against Arroyo's government which was put down by the military.

Romulo thanked Spain on Monday for 'speaking out against' the coup attempt.

http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2007/12/03/afx4400337.html

By Abigail L. Ho
Inquirer
Last updated 01:45am (Mla time) 12/12/2007

KEPCO -SPC Power Corp., a joint venture of Korean-owned KEPCO Philippines Corp. and SPC Power Corp., has awarded a $300-million contract to Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction Companies Ltd. for the establishment of a 200-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant in Naga town in the province of Cebu.

Under the engineering and construction contract, the two 100-MW units of the new plant should be completed in 39-42 months.

In a statement, the joint venture company said the plant would use circulating fluidized bed combustion technology -- described as a clean coal technology that complies with stringent environmental laws, including the Philippine Clean Air Act and World Bank standards.

KEPCO -SPC Power “took the risk of establishing the first power generation plant under the [Electric Power Industry Reform Act] without any government guarantee, not only to strengthen our Philippine investment portfolio, but also to address the projected power shortage in the Visayas grid and bring employment and business opportunities for Cebu,” Kepco-SPC Power president Lee Kang Won said.

Once completed, the Naga, Cebu, plant will supply power to six electric cooperatives that have signed sales contracts for 120 MW of power.

Philippine operations of Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) currently include Kephilco, which operates a 650-MW thermal power Plant in Rizal province, outside Manila, and KEPCO Ilijan Corp., which operates a 1,200-MW combined cycle plant in Batangas province.

The Korean power giant accounts for around 15 percent of the installed generation capacity in the Philippines. With INQUIRER.net Source (http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstories/view_article.php?article_id=106327)

Manila (13 December) -- The consortium of the Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp., Calaca High Power Corp. and State Grid Corp. of China emerged as the highest bidder for the 25-year concession of the National Transmission Corporation (TransCo), the country's sole transmission business, in one of the closest biddings conducted by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM).

"We are very happy about the successful turnout of the bidding exercise for TransCo. PSALM handled the privatization of the government's transmission business with utmost transparency and judiciousness," said PSALM President and Chief Executive Officer Jose C. Ibazeta. "We strictly implemented the bidding procedures and complied with the rules governing the selection of today's winning bidder."

Mr. Ibazeta acknowledged the support and assistance of other government agencies in the privatization of TransCo.

"We would not have gotten this far if not for the support of almost the entire Executive branch of government," he said.

The government's readiness for the TransCo bidding was the result primarily of the joint efforts of representatives of government agencies comprising the PSALM Board, namely, the Departments of Finance, Energy, Justice, Trade and Industry, and Budget and Management, the National Economic and Development Authority, and PSALM.

Monte Oro Grid offered USD3.950 billion for the concession contract, while the consortium of San Miguel Energy Corp., Dutch firm TPG Aurora BV and Malaysia's TNB Prai Sdn Bhd bid USD3.905 billion. Both bidder groups, which submitted their respective bids before the 12 noon deadline yesterday, 12 December, met the reserve price set by PSALM.

Monte Oro Grid is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Monte Oro Resources & Energy, Inc. (MOREI or parent company). It was incorporated in the Philippines on 29 August 2006 to invest and hold interest in shares of stocks of companies engaged or proposing to engage in infrastructure projects.

State Grid Corporation of China was established on the basis of a sum of enterprises and institutions formerly owned by the State Power Corporation of China. State Grid of China is a large-sized enterprise approved by the State Council to operate the business of power transmission, transformation, distribution and other assets of power grid.

Incorporated in the Philippines on 15 December 2006, Calaca High Power is in the business of operating, managing, maintaining, and rehabilitating energy systems and services for gas, steam and electricity.

Monte Oro Grid will be declared the winning bidder as soon as PSALM has verified the accuracy, authenticity and completeness of all the bid documents that the consortium had submitted. PSALM will then issue the Selection Notice to the consortium to signify that it is the winning bidder for the TransCo concession.

After the verification and validation process, the Direct Agreement, duly executed by PSALM, will be delivered to Monte Oro Grid as the highest bidder. The Direct Agreement is part of the technical proposal submitted and executed by the prequalified bidders. It sets forth the conditions precedent to the award of the concession and the execution and delivery of the concession agreement and other final transaction documents.

The commencement date of the concession will be finalized after the following conditions precedent have been both satisfied: (1) Congress has granted a franchise to carry out the concession; (2) PSALM has secured the consent of financial institutions and lenders of the National Power Corp. pertaining to (i) the transfer of transmission assets and all other assets and properties to TransCo as mandated by Section 8 of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act; (ii) the privatization of TransCo by way of concession.

"To ensure the expeditious and smooth commencement of the concession period, PSALM will assist the concessionaire in preparing and submitting an application for a congressional franchise for the operation of the public utility," Mr. Ibazeta pointed out.

"Our mandate is not simply bidding out and privatizing the generation assets and transmission, but ensuring that the interest of the Philippine government and its people is protected and upheld. We thank the bidders and appreciate their sustained interest and participation in this bidding," he concluded.

PSALM's privatization proceeds now total USD6.6 billion, including the sale of the 11 generation assets and the transmission business. (PIA-MMIO) Here (http://www.pia.gov.ph/default.asp?m=12&fi=p071213.htm&no=16)

PNOC-EDC to undertake $ 146-M wind power project
(http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20071221112212.html)

The Philippine National Oil Company-Energy Development Corporation (PNOC-EDC) is reviving its wind power project, but has modified the design to 86 megawatts for an investment of $ 146.5 million.


The project was originally planned to be implemented in three phases for aggregate capacity of 120 megawatts.

The first phase should have been at 40-MW capacity, but the company was advised by project funders to change the blueprint for a bigger installed capacity.

PNOC-EDC president Paul A. Aquino emphasized that the project’s per-megawatt cost would be at around $ 1.7 million.

It is not clear though if it is the privatized PNO-CEDC which will undertake the project or if the government would eventually corner it as a venture for the planned new PNOC subsidiary to tackle renewable energy projects.

The originally-planned wind power project should have been bankrolled by a funding extended by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), but since the loan agreement already lapsed, Aquino noted that another set of financing must be tapped.

A new bidding for the proposed facility’s turnkey contract shall also be held as previously-held exercise on this undertaking was already voided.

PNOC-EDC then was hurdled from implementing the project because of sudden surge in the cost of raw materials and equipment, consequently bloating total construction cost.

Apart from the increased capacity, it was noted that the project design has almost the same components, including the transmission line.

The 42-kilometer transmission line will connect the facility to the substation of the National Transmission Corporation in Laoag. This also requires the construction of a switchyard at Burgos and the interconnection works at the Laoag substation to accommodate the power facility’s output. (MMV)

New power plant in 2010 (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ceb/2007/12/21/bus/new.power.plant.in.2010.html)
Sun.Star
Friday, December 21, 2007

THE country’s largest bank and a consortium led by Aboitiz Power Corp. will build a 246-megawatt power plant worth $400 million in Toledo City, Cebu.

Aboitiz Power Corp. (AP) and Vivant Energy Corp. (Vivant) of the Garcia Group of Cebu have formed a joint venture company called Abovant Holdings Inc. (Abovant), which will hold their investments in a new power plant to be built in Toledo City, Cebu.

This, after the two parties signed a memorandum of agreement with the Metrobank Group’s Global Business Power Corp. (Global Power) in August 2007.

Abovant, which is 60 percent owned by AP and 40 percent owned by Vivant, will invest — together with Global Formosa, in a joint venture between Global Power and Formosa Heavy Industries — in a new coal-fired power plant at the existing Toledo Power Station.

The plant, to be commissioned by 2010, is expected to meet Cebu’s growing demand for power, with the rise of business process outsourcing buildings and new hotels in the province.

Critical

But Cebu Private Power Core Group chairman Carlos Co warned that Cebu’s power supply will become critical between 2008 and early 2010, before any the operation of
any new power plant.

He said Cebu’s thin reserve of 80 megawatts will be diminished further once the Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corp. (ACMDC) in Toledo City becomes operational again. He added that ACMDC is estimated to consume between 20 megawatts and 40 megawatts.

“If one of the existing sources will bog down during peak hours, we will have outages,” he told reporters in an interview last Wednesday.

Co pointed out that between now and early 2010, Cebu will not have new capacity power plants. While the Abovivant plant is expected to be completed in 2010 yet, the proposed 200-megawatt power plant complex of Salcon and the Korean Electric Power Corp. (Kepco) in Naga, Cebu will reportedly operate in 2011.

To address the problem, Co is proposing that the National Power Corp. bring in two power barges to increase supply in Cebu in the last quarter of 2008.

“That’s just a temporary solution,” he said, adding that the power barges can provide additional power during peak hours.

Groundbreaking

Abovant and Global Formosa signed last Wednesday a shareholders’ agreement to form a joint venture company that will develop, construct and own the coal-fired power plant. Abovant and Global Formosa will own 44 percent and 56 percent, respectively, of the joint venture company.

The new power plant will break ground in 2008.

“The 264-MW plant will meet the increasing demand for power in Cebu province that is growing at about nine percent per year. Power generated from the plant will provide the much-needed security to power supply in the province in the coming years,” AP said in a statement.

AP pointed out that additional power will be needed with the influx of business process outsourcing and new hotels in Cebu Province, as well as the presence of large industries in the Toledo-Balamban area.

Industries located in the area include Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corp. in Toledo, the shipbuilding facility of Tsuneishi Heavy Industries and the modular fabrication facility of Metaphil International in Balamban.

Global Power’s Toledo Power Company currently supplies electricity to Visayan Electric Company and Cebu 3 Electric Cooperative from its 70-megawatt coal plant and 40-megawatt diesel plant.

Formosa Heavy Industries — which has a portfolio of modern, efficient and clean coal-fired power plants in Taiwan, the US, Indonesia and the Philippines with aggregate capacity of 14,000 MW — will act as construction contractor and technical partner for the power plant. (LAP/with PR)

Q: why do we blame napocor for overpricing? i think we should not blame the producer, in this case, but the service provider like meralco.. napocor sells the electricity to meralco cheaply, but meralco overprice it as much as double it's actual cost...

Conversion of coal-fed plants mulled (http://http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/jan/01/yehey/business/20080101bus5.html)


THE Department of Energy (DOE) is mulling over the conversion of existing coal-fed power plants of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) into natural gas-fired facilities given the challenges posed by climate change.

“The year 2008 should be the year when our people collectively and decisively move to counter climate change by planting more trees, cleaning our rivers, decreasing substantially gas emissions and shifting to cleaner sources of energy,” Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes said.

The conversion of Napocor’s facilities however would entail the construction of gas pipelines and new natural gas facilities, which in turn would require P304 billion.

Reyes said earlier that the DOE is looking at increasing the use of natural gas because it is a relatively cheaper indigenous fuel resource in contrast to the prohibitive cost of imported fossil fuel-based energy sources.

He said there is a need to shift to these cleaner power sources as the country has much at stake in the success or failure of the global effort against climate change.

Reyes said the recent United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Bali, Indonesia, underscored the need for an all-out global war against atmospheric pollution.
-- Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo

Transco, Hyundai sign P3-B contract for Mindanao project (http://www.gmanews.tv/story/75271/Transco-Hyundai-sign-P3-B-contract-for-Mindanao-project)
01/04/2008 | 05:01 PM

The National Transmission Corp. has signed a P3-billion contract with Korean firms Hyundai Engineering Co. Ltd. and Hyundai Corp. for the improvement of transmission lines in Mindanao.

In a statement released Friday, Transco said Hyundai won the contract through a competitive public bidding. The project will involve improvements to a double-circuit, two-conductor transmission line spanning 105 kilometers from Maramag, Bukidnon to Bunawan, Davao City.

"The project is part of the Abaga-Kirahon-Maramag (Pulangi)-Bunawan 230-kV Transmission Line Project which involves putting up higher capacity lines on steel towers, building new switching stations, and boosting the capability of associated substations to handle bigger loads," Transco said in its statement.

Other project components, Transco said, are the construction of a new switching station in Maramag and the expansion of Bunawan and Tagoloan substations through the installation of new transformers – one 100-MVA at Tagoloan substation, one 75-MVA at Maramag substation, and one 50-MVA at Bunawan substation.

"Once completed, the line will be able to transmit increased power flow from power plants in northern Mindanao towards the major electricity consumers in the area," Transco said. The proposed transmission network will serve as the main 230-kV highway of power delivery to the Southern part of Mindanao .

Transco said the total peso equivalent of the project cost is P2.997 billion. It said 85 percent of the project’s foreign exchange cost will be sourced from the Calyon funding facility while the remaining fifteen percent 15 percent of the forex cost, together with the peso currency component, will be funded from Transco’s internal cash generation.

Representatives of Transco and Hyundai signed the project contract last Dec. 21, 2007. -

Do you have any information about the use of solor energy in our country? I think if the government will introduce the use of solor energy at our homes, that will benifit our economy and our environment.

Arroyo wants energy summit convened

MANILA, Philippines -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has ordered the immediate convening of an energy summit to help cushion the impact of the record rise of world oil prices on the economy.

The President instructed Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes to call a "summit of energy stakeholders" and also instructed energy and trade and industry officials to come up with recommendations for a possible reduction of the government tax on oil, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said in a statement.

The Palace announcement came after oil prices in the United States broke through the key psychological barrier of $100 a barrel for the first time last Thursday over worries that crude inventories in the US, the world's top oil consumer, had sunk to a three-year low.

On Friday prices had eased below $99 a barrel and analysts said the market was likely to enter a quieter period of consolidation before the pivotal meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) next month.

Sen. Mar Roxas called on the government to suspend the oil tax for at least six months to give consumers some relief.

"These are not ordinary times that call for extraordinary measures. $100 per barrel is not normal... The oil tax is good for the economy when oil was still at $30 per barrel, but at $100 the oil tax is not good for the people," Roxas told a media briefing.

The government collects 12-percent expanded value-added tax (E-vat) on oil and other fuel products.

"We cannot accept that the government is helpless about the surge in oil prices," said Roxas, adding that Congress might just opt to legislate the tax freeze to force the government's hand.

Bunye said the President wanted the energy summit "to enhance policies and programs, attract investments in technology, launch development projects that would impact favorably on energy supplies and prices while helping significantly arrest climate change."

Thanks to strong peso
Cerge Remonde, chief of the Presidential Management Staff, said the President was thankful that "we have a strong peso" as it would cushion the impact of the recent price surge. The Philippines imports almost all of its oil requirements.

"It's a good thing we have a strong peso," Remonde quoted Ms Arroyo as saying.

The government last held an oil crisis summit in 2005 when prices of oil spiked.

Remonde said the summit will look at measures that were earlier identified by the government and come up with possible new ones.

Analysts also said the latest surge in oil prices would result in only moderate increases in the price of fuel and other basic goods in the country this month.

The US Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Friday that high oil prices are not expected to be sustained in the coming months as demand is expected to ease with the projected slower economic growth in the US.

The EIA said average monthly crude prices based on the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Index would most likely fall in the coming months to reflect production increases from both members and nonmembers of the Opec.

Also, a projected slowdown in the US economy should douse the current high demand for fuels, the EIA said.

"While oil markets are expected to remain tight and the average price of crude oil in 2008 is expected to be well above the average price of about $72 per barrel seen in 2007, EIA expects average monthly crude oil prices to drop throughout most of 2008, reflecting increases in supply from both Opec and non-Opec countries and the impact of slowing economic growth on demand," the EIA said.

Pump prices not yet affected
Domestic oil companies said they did not expect the recent spike in the price of oil to affect local pump prices--at least not yet.

Eastern Petroleum Corp. chair and chief executive Fernando Martinez said he was not that worried that high world oil prices would prompt an increase in domestic pump prices.

"I can still keep my discounted pump prices up to Jan. 6, as promised. Everyone's still wait-and-see, at this point," said Martinez.

Eastern Petroleum offered from Dec. 26 to Dec. 31 a P1-a-liter discount on gasoline products and a 50-centavos-a-liter price cut in diesel and kerosene. The promotion has been extended to Jan. 6.

Refiners Petron Corp. and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. also offered the same rate cuts "in selected competitive trading areas."

Unioil Petroleum Phil. announced the same price reductions.

Effects on farmers
Agriculture officials said the public can expect only minimal increases, if at all, in the prices of agricultural commodities such as rice and corn.

But the price surge would directly affect farmers, as prices of production inputs, like fertilizer and transport, would be expected to increase as well, said Frisco Malabanan, director of the Ginintuang Masaganang Ani Rice program.

While some fertilizers are sourced domestically, the country imports almost all of its nitrogen, or inorganic fertilizer, Malabanan explained.

"When oil prices increased a year ago, nitrogen fertilizer prices went up to as much as P1,000 a [50 kg] bag, and went back to previous levels when oil prices stabilized. It's possible that this may happen again," he said.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Dennis Araullo said that feed millers will most likely bear the effects of the oil price increase as the price of transporting corn from farm sites to their production centers could also rise.

Feed millers use yellow corn as the main ingredient for animal feeds.

"Although I doubt there will be any huge impact since feed millers have production sites either on or near the farms," said Araullo, who heads the GMA corn program.

Farmers also do not import input materials for corn production, he added.

Transport sector
The spike in oil prices had the transport sector, including bus and taxi groups, clamoring for higher minimum fares whose increases they said they had waived in previous years.

The Land Transportation Franchise and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said Friday that it is consolidating several petitions for fare hikes.

LTFRB chair Thompson Lantion said jeepney groups want up to P9 minimum fare, from the current P7.50.

Bus operators are asking for a 20-percent increase in the minimum fare. The current minimum fare is P8 for regular buses and P10 for air-conditioned buses.

Taxis want the flag-down rate to be increased to P40 from the current P30.

'Big three'
The Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (Piston) transport group yesterday warned the three big oil firms--Shell, Caltex and Petron--against raising fuel prices.

Piston secretary general George San Mateo warned that Piston would immediately launch protest actions if the so-called "Big Three" were to implement a weekly round of fuel price increases.

"There is no basis to have a new local oil price hike because the New York Mercantile Index is an oil futures market operating purely on the basis of speculation with no relation whatsoever with the actual physical condition of the supply and production of oil," San Mateo said.

Do you have any information about the use of solor energy in our country? I think if the government will introduce the use of solor energy at our homes, that will benifit our economy and our environment.

Cagayan de Oro has 1 MW Solar power plant.

Philippine 1 Megawatt PV Generation System

On the southern island of Mindanao in the Philippines, the Cagayan de Oro Electric Power and Light Company has installed a one-megawatt PV system. The purpose is to investigate the potential for operating an electric power system in which a hydroelectric power station is dispatched in conjunction with a "must-run" PV system to provide firm power to the electric grid. Dr. Kern serves as the technical advisor for this project; he prepared the bid specifications and the competitive proposal review criteria, participated in the contractor selection, reviewed and approved design submittals, and reviewed and approved construction progress milestones. Dr. Kern's involvement began in September 2001 and the system was brought online during April 2004. This project was supported in part by the Global Environmental Facility through the International Finance Corporation to investigate the concept of using PV in conjunction with, and enhancing the capacities of existing hydroelectric power systems constructed in developing nations. Following completion of the system construction, a 5-year performance monitoring and evaluation task is being conducted to assess and report on the project and to improve understanding of PV/Hydro concept. Dr. Kern also developed the first large grid-tied PV system in India (Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu) during the mid-1990s and continues to be interested in working with visionary companies and individuals that appreciate the importance of enabling developing countries to shift directly to 21st Century electric power alternatives.



http://www.irradiance.com/philippine2.jpg
Figure 1: 1-MW PV power generation system commissioned in October 2004, for the Cagayan de Oro Electric Power and Light Company, the Global Environmental Facility and the International Finance Corporation, at Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao Island, in the Philippines.

Source (http://www.irradiance.com/philippine.html)

Antique expects hydroelectric power by 2009 (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20080114-112174/Antique-expects-hydroelectric-power-by-2009)


By David Israel Sinay
Visayas Bureau
First Posted 06:04:00 01/14/2008


ILOILO CITY -- The Antique provincial government is looking into the construction of a 14-megawatt (MW) hydroelectric power facility in the province to augment its power needs this year.

Antique Gov. Salvacion Zaldivar-Perez said the proposed hydroelectric power plant would utilize the strong water current of the Dalanas River traversing the towns of Bugasong, Lawaan and Barbaza.

The Antique Electric Cooperative (Anteco) had informed the governor that Antique has a power requirement of 12 megawatts.

Once the power plant project is completed, Antique will have its own power source, Perez said.

At present, Anteco, the province’s sole power distributor, sources its power from the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

“The project is about to start this year in Bugasong. Instead of the initial proposal of 16 MW, only an eight-MW facility shall be carried out. It is because it is easier to establish the source of water for an eight-MW facility,” Perez said in an interview on Thursday.

The project also includes two additional 3-MW power plant facilities, one each in Lawaan and Barbaza towns, she said.

“We will develop these facilities in these three towns, hoping to attain 14 MW to cover Antique province. This project also aims to reduce our power rates and avert brownouts,” Perez said.

But Perez said she would check the background of Sun West Corp., the contractor of the proposed power plant facility, before the implementation of the project. Sun West also has an ongoing project in the Bicol region, similar to the proposed power plant in Antique, she said.

The contractor has set the target date of completion of the hydroelectric power facility in Antique in 2009, said Perez.

Meanwhile, Perez, who also chairs of the Regional Development Council in Western Visayas, said she favored the proposal of a private firm to establish a coal-fired power plant in Iloilo City to solve the frequent power interruptions in the city.

Perez said there was a proposal to build a coal-fired power plant in Anini-y town, Antique a few years ago but this did not push through.

“Antique is located in a fault line (that can cause an earthquake) thus the project was deemed not viable,” she said.
Perez said Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas assured her that the 100-MW coal-fired power plant that would be built by the Global Power Business Corp. would use clean technology.

“According to Mayor Treñas, it is easy to criticize, easy to complain. But he was assuring me that this coal-fired power plant is unlike before because of the new technology [called] fluidized bed. As a leader of Iloilo City, [Treñas] needs to have solutions for the intermittent power of the city. We can always complain but let us give these investors a chance,” Perez added.

Mixed views on coal unit

Cebu Daily News (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/news/view_article.php?article_id=112988)
First Posted 12:37pm (Mla time) 01/17/2008

CEBU CITY, Philippines - The businesss sector sees more investments and possible cheaper power from the operation of the 246-MW coal-fired power plant in Cebu in early 2010.

But environmentalists oppose its construction as they urged the government to tap renewable energy sources instead.

Joel Mari Yu, managing director of Cebu Investment Promotions Center, said investors will not have second thoughts in investing here if they are assured of available power in the island.

“We rate low in power infrastructure because we don't have enough power plants in the island. So, any power plant malfunction causes brownouts,” he said.

He said the plant will make investors here less dependent on transmitted power and supply reserve power.

Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Eric Ng Mendoza said he expects lower power rates than Manila since the power source is within Cebu.

Dondi Joseph, Cebu Business Club president, said the 246-MW coal-fired power plant and the Salcon-Kepco power plant in Naga which is expected to be completed in 2011 will fuel Cebu's economic growth.

However, Eric Casas, president of Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation Inc., said the power plant should be environmentally compliant and should not compromise the welfare of the local community.

“Considering it's coal-fired, it should bring down energy cost which is very important to manufacturing sector. But no matter what economic benefits it can give, there should be no compromise,” he said.

Environmentalists, however, urged the government to tap renewable energy sources instead.

Vince Cinches, former oordinator for the Cebu Alliance for Renewable Energy, said the power shortage stems from transmission problems.

“Consumers pay for energy that is not being used,” he said.

He said that the Department of Energy (DOE) had reported that about 15,765 MW of energy is available, but only more than 10,000 MW is used.

“This is why our electricity bills are high,” he added.

Cinches also cited health risks to residents because of pollution.

Sr. Luz Dolalas, RCSJ, Environmental Legal Assistance Center advocacy officer, said they opposed a similar project in the past and their stand has not changed.

She referred to the proposed Mirant coal-fired power plant project also in Toledo City which did not push through.

Dolalas said “coal is one of the dirtiest sources of energy that produces a lot of carbon which is trapped in the atmosphere and contributes to global warming.”

She said “digging for coal means destroying layers of soil and rocks. This will erode the soil and cause floods.” /Reporters Cris Evert B. Lato and Ma. Bernadette A. Parco

Co-op group to test prepaid electricity plan in Baguio

Philippine Daily Inquirer (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/regions/view/20080121-113686/Co-op-group-to-test-prepaid-electricity-plan-in-Baguio)
First Posted 06:50:00 01/21/2008

BAGUIO CITY -- A national cooperative movement is piloting a new power distribution system in Palawan, which allows consumers to buy electricity in increments in the same way they buy credits for mobile telephones.

Felix Borja, secretary general of the Cooperative Union of the Philippines (CUP), introduced the prepaid electricity system to Baguio cooperatives last week, hoping to entice rural electric cooperatives to convert into regular cooperatives.

Pro-poor

Borja said the innovation was pro-poor and would help the government conserve power supply.

He said the Palawan Rural Electric Cooperative and 17 rural power cooperatives that are listed under the Cooperative Development Authority had signed up for the pre-paid system.

The prepaid system requires households to replace traditional electric meters with a new metering instrument, which can be activated by swipe cards.

The meters will operate for the duration indicated by the prepaid electronic cards.

Centralized administration

The prepaid meter automatically shuts down a household’s electrical system once the credits are consumed, or when someone tampers with the units, Borja said.

Each meter is to be administered by a centralized computer that will be operated in Palawan by a private firm.

Borja said the system fitted in an economy that thrived on sachets of household items.

Like a sachet of soy sauce that can be bought from a neighborhood sari-sari store, prepaid cards as low as P100 can be bought to light up homes.

Borja said this generation had learned to live on a budget when gauged by how it allocated funds for cellular cards or electronic load.

He said it would reduce the queue of consumers lining up just to reconnect their supply because they were unable to pay their utility bills on time.

He said power cooperatives would find the system practical because it will also help reduce power systems losses by 10 to 15 percent.

Systems losses

Pressure from escalating power costs in the provinces and in urban cities drives consumers to steal power, he said.

Power systems losses caused by these thefts are passed on to consumers, causing higher power rates, he said.

The meter’s automatic fail-safes would also eliminate the need for meter readers, and would further cut a cooperative’s operational expenditures, Borja said.

“There are around 120 rural electric cooperatives in the country, which could benefit [from the innovative system] because once their systems losses are reduced, they can charge lesser power rates,” he said.

A company, Global Village, is undertaking a build-operate-transfer project for Palawan to test the system.

The instruments are used in Europe, Canada and China, which have started manufacturing them.

The CUP undertook the project without government support, Borja said. He said Palawan may launch the project on Jan. 25. Vincent Cabreza, Inquirer Northern Luzon

Napocor invests P30M in Romblon power projects
By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
Saturday, January 26, 2008
The Philippine Star Online

The National Power Corp. (Napocor) has invested about P30 million for its power expansion projects in Romblon.

The state-run power agency said this is part of it’s commitment to energize remote areas with the installation of 1,500 kilowatts (kw) of new capacity in two small islands in Romblon.

The company said its technical and maintenance services (TMS) group has completed the 1,000-kw expansion of the Sibuyan diesel power plant (DPP) in Sibuyan Island and the 500-kw expansion of the Corcuera DPP in Simara Island earlier this month.

In his report, TMS vice president Katambayan S. Celino said the installation of two 500-kw generator sets at the Sibuyan DPP will nearly double the dependable capacity of the plant from the previous 1,330 kw.

“This translates to a higher peak reserve, which is badly needed in view of the age of the existing units, some of which are already more than 10 years old,” he said.

Celino said the Corcuera DPP expansion project, on the other hand, will beef up the rated capacity of the power plant by “more than double”, or from 326 kw to 826 kw.

Napocor has earmaked about P15.6 million for the Sibuyan DPP and the remaining P14.2 million for the Corcuera DPP.

Both projects involved the expansion of existing powerhouses, the installation of additional generating sets and the supply of balance-of-plant equipment.

Romblon Electric Cooperative, Inc., the sole power distributor in the province, undertook the Sibuyan DPP expansion project under the supervision of the project management department of TMS. Bendimil Construction and Development Corp., meanwhile was the contractor for the Corcuera DPP expansion project. All three gensets were supplied by Kanbutzu-CXZ.

Apart from Sibuyan and Corcuera DPP, Napocor owns and operates five other generation facilities in Romblon, the Romblon diesel power plant, Power Barge 114, Banton DPP, Concepcion DPP and San Jose DPP.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008012525

Carabao may be key to biofuel, says scientist

By Anselmo Roque
Central Luzon Desk
First Posted 23:02:00 01/26/2008
The Philippine Daily Inquirer

SCIENCE CITY OF MUÑOZ -- Don’t look now but the lowly carabao might yet hold the key to the commercial production of biofuel in the country.

The carabao, says a returning Filipino-American scientist, provides the model as well as the “mother liquor,” for the conversion of rice stubble and straw to ethanol, an alternative to crude oil-based fuels.

“The carabao is a paradigm in converting lignocellulose to ethanol,” said Dr. Fiorello Abenes, a professor emeritus of animal and veterinary sciences at CalPoly Pomona University in California.

“It has rumen fluid whose organisms can help transform rice stubble and straw and other biomass into bioethanol,” he said.

Bioethanol is a light alcohol produced by fermenting sugarcane, corn, cassava and nipa. It is one of the types of biofuel mandated for mixture with diesel and gasoline under the Biofuels Act.

The theoretical basis for this, which Abenes discussed in a lecture at the Institute of Graduate Studies at the Central Luzon State University here, was validated by experiments conducted at the Philippine Carabao Center (PCC).

“The experiments confirmed the ability of the model to produce ethanol using rumen microorganisms as first stage fermenters, followed by yeasts in the final fermenting stage,” he said.

Abenes, who obtained his doctoral degree in animal science at the University of Connecticut in 1975, worked for many years as regional swine specialist in Alberta, Canada, and at the Dairy Training and Research Institute of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations before moving to CalPoly Pomona University.

He retired at 55 years old in that university in 2005 and is now engaged in various private enterprises in the United States.

Abenes graduated with the degree of agricultural education, cum laude, from the CLSU in 1969. He was among the first Filipinos staying abroad who responded to the government’s Balik-Scientist program in 1975.

“We can extract the rumen fluid from carabao and multiply them many times for commercial production of ethanol from biomass,” he told the Inquirer before returning to the States on Jan. 18.

In his lecture at the CLSU, Abenes said the carabao is a model for a way to convert lignocellulose to ethanol. Lignocellulose is the most common molecule on earth and is found in all plants.

Converting this molecule to alcohol using purified enzymes, chemical and physical hydrolysis (or chemical breakdown) is too expensive under Philippine conditions, Abenes said.

“The carabao is known for its ability to subsist on low quality forage, including rice stubble and straw. This ability is conferred upon this animal by the rumen that digests cellulose and hemicellulose, turning them into methane and volatile fatty acids (VFAs),” Abenes said.

The methane, he said, is expelled when the carabao belches while the VFAs are parceled between the host animal and the microorganisms.

“The host animal uses the VFAs as a source of energy. The microorganisms use them to support its life functions by synthesizing glucose,” he said.

Abenes said the feasibility of the method, as suggested by the carabao paradigm, has been validated in experiments conducted by the PCC.

He said the rumen fluid can turn lignocellulose into fermentable carbohydrates and the fermentable carbohydrates can be turned into alcohol using common yeast.

Abenes, who conducted the experiment with PCC scientist Perla Florendo, said because of the promising results of the experiment they submitted a paper to a national science and technology contest in energy research and development.

“We have no illusion about winning any prize due to limited scope of the project but its submission at least documents that the first research in this area was conducted at PCC and CLSU,” Abenes said.

He said preliminary calculations based on theoretical models have indicated that as much as 117 liters of alcohol can be distilled from 1,000 kg of biomass materials.

Given the natural abundance of biomass, the use of 85 percent ethanol for flexible fuel vehicles (FFV) may be possible, he said.

There is now a technology for the conversion of vehicles using engine fuel to FFV at an affordable cost, he said.

The mandated minimum 1 percent biodiesel blend and 5 percent bioethanol blend in all diesel and gasoline fuels have become controversial of late because of the statement of Nobel Prize winner in chemistry, Dr. Hartmut Michel.

Michel said investment in biofuel development is “counterproductive” as producing biofuel would sometimes entail clearing a forest that would destroy biodiversity and emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, author of the Biofuels Act, sought more government oversight powers over biofuel development, saying it could adversely affect the country’s ability to produce its own food.

She said biofuel production, being land-based, will eventually compete with food.

In his talk here, Abenes said the carabao model for production of ethanol could be an alternative as it uses rice straw and other biomass.

He said the experience of Brazil, the oft-cited model for a thriving ethanol industry, cannot be replicated in this country.

Brazil, he said, has a vast tract of land for sugarcane production. There are less than 25 persons per square kilometer of land in Brazil compared to the Philippines’ 300 persons per square kilometer. Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world, has a land area of 8,511,965 square kilometers. The Philippines’ land area is 300,439 square kilometers.

Abenes said the commercial production of ethanol using the carabao model can involve residents of rural areas. They can be part of the factory assembly line by performing the tasks involved in the digestion process (in bioreactor containers) of the biomass material with the use of the rumen fluid that will be supplied to them.

The alcohol from the “bacterial beer” collected from the participating rural residents can be further refined through a solar distiller, he said.

The distiller is now being designed by engineers from CLSU, he said.

Abenes also said residents who will be involved in this project can have added income, making the project a boost to rural economy

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20080126-115028/Carabao-may-be-key-to-biofuel-says-scientist

UN team to review Bataan nuclear plant

http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20080129-115396/UN-team-to-review-Bataan-nuclear-plant

Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:04:00 01/29/2008

An eight-member team from the United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will conduct a review of the mothballed 620-megawatt Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) northwest of Manila to aid the Philippines in deciding whether to pursue nuclear power generation, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said.

Reyes said the group flew in Sunday and would visit the BNPP site in Morong town in Bataan province, this Tuesday.

An initial report will be submitted to the Department of Energy by Friday, he said.

Led by the group’s nuclear power division director Akira Omoto, the team’s members are Asia and the Pacific section head Zhang Jing, nuclear power division technical officer Ki Sig Kang, nuclear safety and installations division technical officer David Greaves, and nuclear safety and security division technical officer Eric Weinstein.

Also in the group are consultant and legal infrastructure expert John Rames from Australia and consultants and nuclear power experts Jose Brayner Costa Mattos from Brazil and Ioan Rotaru from Romania.

Reyes said the group would make a recommendation on what would be the best way to go: to rehabilitate and re-fire the BNPP, to convert it to a plant that uses another type of fuel, or to junk it altogether.

“In other words, they will not recommend to us to either open it or not open it, or rehabilitate or not rehabilitate,” he said. “They will just advise us on what we have to do to arrive at that decision. But we are not compelled to accept any of their recommendations.”

He noted that the IAEA was formed to assist in technology transfer and advise countries considering nuclear power generation.

The IAEA could also find out if a country is violating any safety or environmental standards related to nuclear power generation, he added.

Reyes said that at present the government was making initial studies on whether or not it should again consider nuclear power production.

“I’m not ready to commit to anything other than studying” that possibility, he said. “What we are saying is to keep our options open -- get and train people in nuclear technology. What we don’t want is a power shortage situation.” Abigail L. Ho; edited by INQUIRER.net

Energy summit proposals point to gains for industry
http://www.bworldonline.com/BW020408/content.php?id=003

THREE DAYS of "hearing and listening" at last week’s Energy Summit may have produced a hodgepodge of solutions, but among it is a concrete support system for the industrial sector.


This includes a power system loss differentiation program — lowering the sector’s electric bills at the expense of residential and other commercial customers — and the concept of an industry competitiveness fund, which will help the sector compete regionally.

For the long-term, two legislative measures will also likely be endorsed in the final report due to be presented to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo tomorrow. These bills, expected to encourage competition in their respective sectors, are the Renewable Energy measure and amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA).

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) President Jesus P. Francisco, talking to reporters after Friday’s workshop on lowering power rates, said his firm was inclined to offer a system loss differentiation scheme.

"What we do is target specific segments — this may be an industry or corporation — and we separate their system loss level. It could be smaller, yes, meaning their power bills will be lower," he said.

That partiality, however, means system loss for other users, mainly residences, will increase. Mr. Francisco admitted that the scheme would mean higher power costs for some.

"It will still need regulatory approval so we will see. But to lower power rates it will largely be one sector’s gain [at the expense of another]," he said.

Mr. Francisco said further cuts in the distribution rate, or what Meralco charges for its own services, might be impossible.

"We are actually asking for an increase this year," he said, emphasizing that the largest component in power rates are generation charges which are due to power producers.

"So it’s really a larger, complex [energy] problem," he said.

For their part, industrial groups proposed the concept of an industry competitiveness fund, which is aimed to helping players compete in the regional market. At a processing seminar over the weekend, participants were still debating the fund’s finer details.

"It’s still a concept," said Finance undersecretary Jeremias N. Paul, who is part of the core group overseeing investments and fiscal policy.

He said the fund may be sourced from the government, or from contributions of industry players themselves.

Policy-wise, the Energy Summit had extensive deliberations over the renewable energy (RE) and omnibus power bills.

"The RE bill is long overdue. We need it to create a business environment, to bring in resources and technology. It will create a policy framework and predictability in our environment," said Catherine P. Maceda, a member of the RE Coalition.

Since the bill is still pending in Congress — Energy committee chairman Senator Miriam D. Santiago has promised to pass it by February — the summit report will reflect stopgap solutions.

Within six months, the Energy department has pledged to put up a one-stop shop for RE investments, along with a knowledge center.

"We need this in the immediate since there are a lot of investors coming in already [even without the bill in place]," Energy department director for energy utilization Mario C. Marasigan said during discussions.

Analysts and the private sector are, however, divided over amendments to the EPIRA.

Fernando Y. Roxas, an analyst at the Asian Institute of Management, said it might be time to revisit the law since one requisite for open access, the privatization of independent power producer (IPP) contracts, has derailed competition in power.

"Maybe we can remove this from the conditions precedent and make it a transitory provision, giving [the government] a deadline for establishing the IPPA (IPP Administrators, the body which will take over IPP contracts) or an alternative way of reducing [the National Power Corp.’s dominance]," he told workshop participants.

The private sector however, has said changing the rules midstream would hamper investments.

The Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. (SEIPI) wrote Congress, "We strongly believe that the same objectives can be achieved in a manner that is more expeditious yet will not carry the destabilizing effects that amendments to EPIRA will have."

Meanwhile, stakeholders across the production chain still hope their own proposals will be incorporated in the final report due tomorrow.

The transport groups and the petroleum industry are asking for policy changes, among others. The consumer sector has asked for disparate resolutions such as the expansion of lifeline subsidies and suspension of value-added tax on oil and power.

All recommendations will be reconciled today.

Over the weekend, the Energy department gathered a core team of 40 experts and policy makers at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finalize the resolutions for five workshops:

>> the upstream sector, which aims to reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil;
>> the renewable and alternative energy sector, which taps non-conventional sources of fuel and energy;
>> the downstream sector, which operationalizes programs for energy conservation and efficiency;
>> high oil prices in the world market, which discussed fiscal flexibility in response to the world market; and
>> high power prices, which racked up myriad solutions from different stakeholders.

"The summit report will be a recommended action plan, to be implemented by government, stakeholders. It will not necessarily be approved by the president, except for [the laws]. This is a buy-in; this is a social mobilization effort," Energy secretary Angelo T. Reyes said.

The ADB, meanwhile, is backing one project. Sohail Hasnie, ADB senior energy expert, said the agency has committed to renewable energy projects.

"We will begin with a $30 million possible loan, which involves a program for energy efficiency in lighting of public buildings, streetlighting, transport efficiency, electric jeepney. The proposal and loan details finalized by early March," he said.
________________________

Thats is just great, 3 days of planning and one of their solution is for residential consumers to shoulder the system loss... that is just soooo brilliant of them :ohno:

Construction starts on $ 500-M coal-fired power plant in Cebu
http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20080204116151.html

James A. Loyola

A consortium led by Global Business Power Corporation has started the construction of a $ 500 million in a 264-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Toledo City, Cebu.

The group, which also Formosa Heavy Industries Corporation, Aboitiz Power Corporation, and Vivant Power Corporation, said this goes to show that they are committed to help solve the inadequate power supply in the province.

Global Power President Jesus Alcordo said that the proposed power plant will also supply power to the Negros and Panay Island.

Cebu has a total power demand of around 460 MW, a nine percent increase from the 2007 figures. At present, Cebu imports power from the geothermal power plant in Leyte through submarine transmission cable.

Due to Cebu’s dependence on the Leyte geothermal power plant, any disruption from the power source or the transmission facility will cause power shortage that will, in turn, result in brownouts in the province.

The new state-of-the-art power plant to be built in Sangi, Toledo will have 3 x 82-MW capacity generators. These power generators will use circulating fluidized bed clean coal technology, which will ensure that sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions will meet World Bank standards.

The project is set to be completed by the first quarter of 2010.

Alcordo said the Cebu-Negros-Panay grid is facing a looming power crisis that will adversely impact on the economy of the three islands if the supply problem will not be addressed.

PNOC-EDC to bid for govt's power assets, build more plants

Thomson Financial

MANILA, Philippines -- PNOC Energy Development Corp., the Philippines' biggest producer of geothermal power, said Wednesday it plans to boost its output by bidding for four government-owned power plants and building new facilities.

PNOC-EDC, now controlled by First Gen Corp., will make bids for geothermal plants with a combined capacity of 1,155 megawatts -- the 192MW Palinpinon plant, the 113MW Tongonan plant, the 150MW Bacon-Manito plant, and the 700MW Tiwi-Makban plant.

The target acquisitions will double PNC-EDC's installed capacity to 2,400 megawatts, PNOC-EDC resident Paul Aquino told reporters.

The company is also looking to construct new power plants with a combined capacity of 310 megawatts.

PNOC-EDC, which produces electricity generated from heat stored beneath the earth's surface, reported last week net profit of P8.7 billion for 2007, up 26 percent from the previous year.

The peso's appreciation against the US dollar, which lowered costs associated with existing contracts to operate government-owned power plants and with foreign loans, helped boost earnings, it said.

PNOC-EDC is now a unit of Red Vulcan Holdings Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of power producer First Gen.

In November, Red Vulcan made the winning bid of P58.5 billion for the government's remaining 60 percent stake in PNOC-EDC.

First Gen is a unit of power and infrastructure conglomerate First Philippine Holdings Corp (FPHC).

Shares in PNOC-EDC were trading P1.00 or 1.7 percent higher at P6.00 midway through Wednesday's session.

First Gen was up 50 centavos or 1.2 percent at P44.00. FPHC was steady at P52.00. (By Enrico dela Cruz)

($1 = P40.81)

2/7/2008 11:43:44 PM

The board of executive directors of the World Bank has approved a US$12.94-million loan to the Philippine government to help stabilize power supply in the Bicol region, which was badly hit by a series of typhoons in 2006. The loan is part of a US$21.6-million program for rebuilding the supply network, jointly funded by the World Bank and the Philippine government.

Philippine suffered a loss of US$250 million from supertyphoons Reming and Milenyo that lashed the country in 2006. This exclude revenue losses incurred by undertakings like TransCo and electricity cooperatives.

http://www.rttnews.com/forex/economicnews.asp?date=02/07/2008&item=50

Construction of coal-fired
plant in Cebu starts


By Wilfredo Rodolfo III
Reporter
The Business Mirror


CEBU CITY—The Korean Electric Co. (Kepco)-SPC Power Corp. (KSPC) consortium on Thursday held a groundbreaking ceremony to start the construction of its 200-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant in Naga City, south of Cebu City, while announcing that most of its expected output had already been contracted to distributors.

Alfredo Henares, executive vice president of Kepco-KSPC, said the company has already sealed power-purchase agreements with seven electric cooperatives in Cebu and Negros, which could cover for 160 MW.

The biggest buyer, he said, would be Central Negros Electric Cooperative Inc. (Ceneco), which signed to buy 90 MW from the power plant that is set to be completed in 2011.

Other power cooperatives which signed agreements with Kepco-KSPC are the Cebu Electric Cooperative Inc. (Cebeco) 1, 2 and 3.

The contracts with the cooperatives are already pending approval with the Energy Regulatory Commission.

Carlos Co, the chairman of the Cebu business sector’s Cebu Power Core Group, expressed hope the $272-million power plant would be enough to secure Cebu and the Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) grid’s power requirements in the long term.

He said the 200 MW of KSPC and the additional 246 MW from Cebu Power Corp. in Toledo City, which is set to be online in 2010, should be enough to avert any projected power shortage in the fast-growing Metro Cebu.

Co, however, warned that the additional capacities may not be enough to put up a comfortable power reserve in the grid if the National Power Corp. goes on with its plan to retire its old and inefficient power plants in the CNP grid.

Thursday’s groundbreaking ceremony was attended by Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, Rep. Eduardo R. Gullas, Naga City Mayor Valdemar Chiong, Lee Won-gul, Kepco president and chief executive officer and Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Hong Jong Ki.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/0215&162008/economy06.html

RP building ‘human resources’ for nuclear power -- Arroyo

MANILA, Philippines -- (UPDATE) President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Friday disclosed that the government was building a "new set of human resources" for nuclear energy even as she said country could only go nuclear after her administration ends in 2010.

"Whatever policy we take now will not really be carried out in my administration because when many years ago, we decided to do away with nuclear energy, the nuclear manpower left," she said in reply to a question on whether her government will promote nuclear energy in the country.

Arroyo said in a speech at the Philippine Economic Forum in Makati City Friday she has made a policy to "build up the human resources again so that a future president can make a decision to have nuclear power.''

The Philippines has one nuclear power plant in the Bataan peninsula but it was never operated due to safety concerns.

Arroyo encouraged, however, those interested in putting up nuclear power in the country to come and look at different sites and make their feasibility studies.

During the same forum, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said an eight-man team from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations' nuclear energy watchdog, recently finished a weeklong study in the country.

"The team was sent here to tell us what steps to take before we come to a reasoned judgment on whether we have to in fact set up a nuclear power plant or not," Reyes said, adding the team left last week.

Among the recommendations made by the IAEA team to the government was for a feasibility study to be done and this would take about two years to finish.

"If the feasibility study says go, it will take five years before we can finally set (the nuclear plant) up and operate it,'' he said.

"As the President said, this will not happen in two years," Reyes said, referring to the remainder of the President's term.

Christine O. Avendano, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Early okay of Panay
power project sought (http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/February/16/businessnews2.htm)

The Regional Development Council-Infrastructure Development Committee is pushing for the early approval of the Southern Panay Backbone Transmission project by the National Economic Development Authority and the National Transmission Corporation.

The P1.884-billion project, with financing by the CALYON facility, is now undergoing evaluation with the NEDA-Investment Coordinating Committee.

In a resolution, the RDC-IDC states the immediate implementation of the project will address the looming power shortage in Panay Island by increasing and upgrading transmission line facilities in the project-affected areas.

It is part of the Panay transmission backbone project under the Visayas Transmission Augmentation Project seeking to address inferior voltage quality in Southern Panay , improve systems reliability and operational flexibility of Iloilo Electric Cooperative I and the Antique Electric Cooperative franchise areas.

The project will allow the extension of power delivery services to unenergized areas.

Nuclear power plants are good as long as they are built to last and safer. Power rates should go down once they build one.

I'm just having some certain points to ponder:

If Gloria Arroyo or the national government is pushing for renewables, then why is it that effort isn't felt here in Iloilo?
Quite double standard in the sense that we are preventing the coal power plant from entering the city but how come we can't do anything about vehicular emissions too?
Why don't they just have to put the coal power plant somewhere far from the city or any urban area if we are talking about immediate effects on health of the residents within the vicinity?
What is EPIRA's stand on the PPC and PECO partnership?
What is EPIRA's stand on surplus power just in case that the coal power plant may create excess power?
How come there is so much noise with Global Business-Metrobank's coal power plant compared to DMCI's in Concepcion?
Why do they prefer constructing a coal power plant that is near to an urban area rather than placing it in a safe place where trees may seep in the carbon dioxide emmisions?
How much does Panay Island needs now and within the next decade?
In case the GBP-Metrobank's proposal is not realized, are there alternatives in getting affordable extra juice for the city? Can PECO find a potential source other than the Diesel Plant and the 15MW NPC connection?
In case that Ingore Coal Power Plant of GBP-Metrobank doens't push thru, then what can PECO do to mitigate the energy crisis in Iloilo City and make the electricity cost more affordable to the public? Will they hold Iloilo City by neck and saying that we no longer have any energy sources and will have rotational blackouts? Will they resort to that kind of blackmail if ever that happens?
Would it be beneficial for the greater public if the government takes over PECO and PPC by declaring a state of emergency?
Whatever happened to the proposed congressional inquiry for PECO & PPC? Was it covered by a bigger issue over House Speakership?
How come in Iloilo, we're so against the construction of coal power plant while in Cebu, they are already starting their construction in Toledo City for the same company (GBP-Metrobank)?
If the other coal power plant will be constructed and online by 2010 (DMCI Concepcion), is it possible for PECO to tap the said power plant?
Can Megaworld do the same thing that Philippine Foremost Milling and Iloilo Provincial Capitol did? Getting their electricity source from NAPOCOR instead of going through PECO? It will be more affordable in their case.Mainit kasi ang topic ng construction of a coal power plant within the city premises of Iloilo City....near the urban area.

Philippines: Bataan nuclear plant costs $155,000 a day but no power
by Karl Wilson


NEARLY 30 years after work began on the Bataan nuclear power plant just north of Manila, Filipino taxpayers are still paying 155,000 dollars a day in interest on a structure that has never produced one watt of power.

Thelmo Cunanan, chief executive of state-run Philippine National Oil Co., said it had become the country's most outstanding white elephant.

"The fact that we are still paying interest on a project that is 30 years old and has not produced a watt of electricity should send at least one positive signal to the investment community," he told Agence France-Presse in a telephone interview.

The signal was that "If we enter an agreement at least we pay our bills. There were times when I thought: why should we? Why don't we simply turn our backs and walk away from it but that is not the way we Filipinos do business."

The Bataan nuclear power plant was a knee jerk reaction by former Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos to the energy crisis of the early 1970s.

The oil embargo had put a heavy strain on the economy and Marcos saw nuclear power as the best way forward in terms of meeting the country's future power needs and lessening the nation's reliance on imported oil.

Construction began in 1976 and was completed in 1984 at a cost of 2.3 billion dollars.

The power station, 60 miles (97 kilometres) north of Manila, has been the centre of controversy from the day construction began.

When Marcos was overthrown by the so-called People Power Revolution in early 1986 a team of international inspectors visited the site and declared it unsafe and inoperable as it was built near major earthquake fault lines and near the Pinatubo volcano which at the time was dormant.

The first post-Marcos government of Corazon Aquino sealed the nuclear plant's fate for good when it banned the use of nuclear power and enshrined it into the Constitution.

Debt repayment on the plant is the country's biggest single obligation.

Successive governments have looked at ways of converting the plant into an oil, coal, or gas-fired power station.

According to Cunanan a South Korean company recently expressed an interest in taking over the nuclear power station and developing it as a commercial operation. But the provision in the constitution ruled it out.

Cunanan said it would be unfair to name the company but said the government has not ruled out converting the plant into a fossil fuel power station.

Some studies in the past have shown that converting the plant may be too expensive.

The plant itself has been maintained despite never having been commissioned.

A Westinghouse light water reactor, it was designed to produce some 621 megawatts of electricity.

Much of the technology used in the plant was early 1970s but modified following the Three Mile Island accident in the United States in 1979.

http://www.energybulletin.net/866.html

More on Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bataan_Nuclear_Power_Plant)

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant, completed but never fueled, on Bataan Peninsula, 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Manila in the Philippines. It is located on a 3.57 square kilometer government reservation at Napot Point in Morong, Bataan. It was the Philippines' only attempt at building a nuclear power plant.

does it house radioactive materials? if not pabayaan na yan. sayang naman ng pera its in $$$ pa

I'm just having some certain points to ponder:

If Gloria Arroyo or the national government is pushing for renewables, then why is it that effort isn't felt here in Iloilo?
Quite double standard in the sense that we are preventing the coal power plant from entering the city but how come we can't do anything about vehicular emissions too?
Why don't they just have to put the coal power plant somewhere far from the city or any urban area if we are talking about immediate effects on health of the residents within the vicinity?
What is EPIRA's stand on the PPC and PECO partnership?
What is EPIRA's stand on surplus power just in case that the coal power plant may create excess power?
How come there is so much noise with Global Business-Metrobank's coal power plant compared to DMCI's in Concepcion?
Why do they prefer constructing a coal power plant that is near to an urban area rather than placing it in a safe place where trees may seep in the carbon dioxide emmisions?
How much does Panay Island needs now and within the next decade?
In case the GBP-Metrobank's proposal is not realized, are there alternatives in getting affordable extra juice for the city? Can PECO find a potential source other than the Diesel Plant and the 15MW NPC connection?
In case that Ingore Coal Power Plant of GBP-Metrobank doens't push thru, then what can PECO do to mitigate the energy crisis in Iloilo City and make the electricity cost more affordable to the public? Will they hold Iloilo City by neck and saying that we no longer have any energy sources and will have rotational blackouts? Will they resort to that kind of blackmail if ever that happens?
Would it be beneficial for the greater public if the government takes over PECO and PPC by declaring a state of emergency?
Whatever happened to the proposed congressional inquiry for PECO & PPC? Was it covered by a bigger issue over House Speakership?
How come in Iloilo, we're so against the construction of coal power plant while in Cebu, they are already starting their construction in Toledo City for the same company (GBP-Metrobank)?
If the other coal power plant will be constructed and online by 2010 (DMCI Concepcion), is it possible for PECO to tap the said power plant?
Can Megaworld do the same thing that Philippine Foremost Milling and Iloilo Provincial Capitol did? Getting their electricity source from NAPOCOR instead of going through PECO? It will be more affordable in their case.Mainit kasi ang topic ng construction of a coal power plant within the city premises of Iloilo City....near the urban area.

THERES NO such thing as CLEAN COAL.. and beside, its good, however its like fooling ourselves, we are very active on promoting the care for the environment and yet where destroying it, besides, geothermal is more cheaper than coal. and its renewable. i think greenpeace is packing up on researching renewables for panay. my uncle is using a wind turbine for his farm a small one that could at least light up a fourth of the farms power needs, i know somewhere in navotas, two wind turbine are installed to light up the streets for their barangay, lets start to think clean.

iloilo is ones noted for innovation, i know that theres a better way, however, if it is necessary why not however that should be considered for a short term goal not a long one, because, definitely, problems would arise.

^^ Isn't there a submarine cable going to iloilo from bacolod ?

negros occidental and oriental sources its electricity exclusively from geothermal power plants. they export their surplus to cebu and iloilo

^^ Isn't there a submarine cable going to iloilo from bacolod ?

negros occidental and oriental sources its electricity exclusively from geothermal power plants. they export their surplus to cebu and iloilo

yup there is, that is part of the visayan grid. we dont need to rely on taiwans resource to show cleanliness, because obviously, chinese cities are the dirtiest. what are the causes of smog in beijing? shanghai? hongkong buys power from inner china? however what are the consequences. some people sometimes think so abruptly that long term goals are not actually forseen because of irrational judgements. whats accessible, thats it? wether its dirty or not, we need it, I remember a garcia gorvernor(cebu), correct if im wrong, once said, if you dont like development, go to africa, well that is pertaining to the potable water issue, now it is uncontrollable, cebu right now buys their water from bohol, a more expensive choice. take a look on apo island national marine park, it is the envy of the world, when it comes to sustainability, initial cost is, anger from the coastal community, it was surpassed, now they enjoy pure sustainability, now new cost is arising, angry, unmindful, destructive, tourists and uncontrollable tourist operators.
this is an example of sustainability, iloilo should have encourage its people to be active on looking for innovations which is, once they were reknowned of.
- first outside manila to have an extensive reclamation project.
- first province/city to be self sufficient on power late 1900's.
- province in the south which became a support for rice supply.
- extensive sugar trading (time in memorial)
- cultural
- banking and finance
- etc.

There's no question really on Renewables...they're clean and environment-friendly. The question really is:

WOULD YOU...

....build renewables at high project costs and low power output and wait 3 to 5 more years before it becomes operational (in the meantime, increasing energy demand will cause some rationing of electricity in some areas in 3 to 5 years)?

or

....build a coal or diesel plant (fossil fuel) at low project costs and large power output and wait just a year or 2 before it becomes operational?

It's really a question of whether we want a feasible short-term project or feasible long-term project. If the demand is needed NOW....then the most feasible is really a Coal-fired or Diesel Plant. All you need is a site where the engine (for Diesel) or a Boiler and Turbine (for Coal) will be placed and other accessibility issues.

If the demand is needed in 3 or 5 years...then renewable energy would be the most feasible. You'll need more time to study the weather patterns (for wind, solar, hydro), environmental setting (hydro) and of course social impacts.

OF COURSE, power plants run by fossil fuels are not environmentally-friendly. No Question. But it's economics which dictates particularly in developing countries such as ours. Can you afford to wait 3 to 5 years with occasional brownouts? That's what happened in the mid-1990s when our country had a power crisis (almost 12-hour daily brownouts) and then Pres. FVR constructed Diesel Power Plants and Power Barges where construction time is short.

Albay assured of cheap power
from geothermal project

By Danny O. Calleja
Correspondent
The Business Mirror

LEGAZPI CITY—Albay consumers are assured of stable power supply at a cost lower than the national rate once the new P6.6-billion geothermal energy project of the Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) in the province starts commercial operations, the provincial government announced Monday.

This assurance is guaranteed by a long-term supplier-buyer agreement between the PNOC and the province wherein the entire 40 megawatts (MW) of production of the new power source shall be devoted to Albay at P2.80 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), a price that is 30- percent lower than the national rate of P4.11 per kWh, Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said.

At present, Albay province consumes at least 36 MW being retailed by the Albay Electric Cooperative (Aleco) at P9.11 per kWh, a high rate brought about by high systems loss and other charges being imposed by the cooperative and the National Power Corp. (Napocor) as well as the National Transmission Corp. (Transco).

Aleco generates over P1.2 billion in yearly power-bill collections from its over 500,000 member-consumers across the province.

Apart from the cost of electricity, Napocor also collects from the power cooperative generation charges, among other incidental charges, while Transco, which handles the electricity distribution, collects transmission payments. All these fees are being passed on by the cooperative to the consumers.

Albay, which hosts the Tiwi Geothermal Project in Tiwi town where the Napocor draws 75 MW of power, and shares territories with Sorsogon being occupied by the 110-MW Bacon-Manito Geothermal Project (Bac-Man), had been seeking preferential electricity rate, but because of the “one-grid, one rate” policy of the Napocor, this supposed benefit for Albay residents could not be realized.

Power coming from the Tiwi project and Bac-Man is being supplied by Napocor to its Luzon Grid, from where Albay also draws its electricity supply being part of the grid.

The new Mt. Kayabon Geothermal Energy Project (Kayabon) of the PNOC, located at the mountainous terrain of Manito, Albay, would be the answer to that preferential or lower-rate clamor of the Albay residents, Salceda said.

One thing that would contribute to the attainment of the lower rate, he said, is that the transmission system between Aleco and Kayabon would be direct, bypassing the Transco distribution facilities.

PNOC, through its Energy Development Corp. (EDC), would start by September of this year the Kayabon exploration project on an over 200-hectare geothermal-rich field in two barangays covering the Mount Kayabon forest reservation area.

The project site is adjacent to the Bac-Man area at the vast Mount Inang Maharang forest reservation within the boundaries of Sorsogon City and Manito, Albay.

A P6.6-billion fund has been earmarked by the energy firm for the Kayabon project, and apart from the economic benefits that could be derived from cheaper power rates, it would also generate for Albay some P34 million in annual revenues for host barangays, municipalities and the province in terms of realty taxes and royalty shares.

It would also provide jobs to over 2,200 workers, both skilled and non-skilled, according to PNOC-EDC-Bac-Man resident manager Buddy Virata.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/02192008/economy08.html

There's no question really on Renewables...they're clean and environment-friendly. The question really is:

WOULD YOU...

....build renewables at high project costs and low power output and wait 3 to 5 more years before it becomes operational (in the meantime, increasing energy demand will cause some rationing of electricity in some areas in 3 to 5 years)?

or

....build a coal or diesel plant (fossil fuel) at low project costs and large power output and wait just a year or 2 before it becomes operational?

It's really a question of whether we want a feasible short-term project or feasible long-term project. If the demand is needed NOW....then the most feasible is really a Coal-fired or Diesel Plant. All you need is a site where the engine (for Diesel) or a Boiler and Turbine (for Coal) will be placed and other accessibility issues.

If the demand is needed in 3 or 5 years...then renewable energy would be the most feasible. You'll need more time to study the weather patterns (for wind, solar, hydro), environmental setting (hydro) and of course social impacts.

OF COURSE, power plants run by fossil fuels are not environmentally-friendly. No Question. But it's economics which dictates particularly in developing countries such as ours. Can you afford to wait 3 to 5 years with occasional brownouts? That's what happened in the mid-1990s when our country had a power crisis (almost 12-hour daily brownouts) and then Pres. FVR constructed Diesel Power Plants and Power Barges where construction time is short.
this is what i mention on my prev log:

iloilo is ones noted for innovation, i know that theres a better way, however, if it is necessary why not however that should be considered for a short term goal not a long one, because, definitely, problems would arise.

fossil fuels for short term goals/agenda, not for a long period. because one thing about the philippines, we are an archipelago, and to contain the pollution is very hard and quite impossible in our present situation. likewise, i dont like my children not to experience whats life is all about, all that quality of life can bring. and besides philippines is under many agreements around the world, including the carbon payments.

those studies that you need are actually in place, the patterns and so on. what we need now are equipments, pagasa will recieve a grant from USA to improve its fascilities, research is whats lacking here, i never heard of any universities lately conductiing research to develop local pool of talents, rather, wheew, theyre conducting measures to improve their fiscal forms. a lot of work to do.
demand is another, it promotes voracious power need, well that will always come if development is expected, however conservation is still needed.
as far as experience go, education on what is sustainable is the most strenious.

note: geothermal energy is free, coal is not. thats why the fascility costs a lot because it could withstand, and sustainability is very eminent. as for wind farms, philippines power potential, is around 70,000 MW, cost of bldg the turbine costs a lot around 13 to 19 million pesos, a turbine could generate, 11 MW upto 15 MW. source would be of course my group, GREENPEACE

Philippine wind power potential highest in Southeast Asia

Greenpeace calls on RP to fast track Renewable Energy Bill
By LEA GUERRERO, Greenpeace Southeast Asia
September 24, 2006

MANILA, Philippines – The Greenpeace on Thursday called on the Philippine government to fast track the passage of a stronger Renewable Energy (RE) Bill which must contain ambitious, legally-binding targets in order to effectively make a difference in the fight against climate change. The call was issued shortly after the launch of a new industry report, 'Global Wind Energy Outlook 2006,' in Australia by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and Greenpeace. The report, an analysis of how the uptake of wind power worldwide is the key to stopping climate change, also cites how the Philippines has the highest wind energy potential in Southeast Asia.

"The report firmly places wind power as one of the world’s most important energy sources for the 21st century. The Philippines has the potential to become a leading player in this field. But this requires political will on the part of the government to set legally-binding renewable energy targets in the RE Bill. Energy policies must also overcome institutional and market biases in favor of coal and fossil fuels," says Greenpeace Southeast Asia Climate and Energy campaigner Jasper Inventor.

"Greenpeace is calling on the Philippine government to embrace a target that increases the share of renewables to at least 10% of the country’s energy needs by the year 2010. This is a win-win option for a developing country like the Philippines which is most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, as well as to threats from rising fossil fuel prices," he added.

At present less than 1% of the entire energy needs of the Philippines comes from renewable sources such as wind, sun, and modern biomass. The RE bill being deliberated in congress lacks definite targets which will trigger the much-needed massive uptake of renewable energy in the country.

Based on a study by the US-based National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the Philippines’ wind energy potential of 70,000-MW can meet the country's current energy demand seven times over. Currently, only one wind farm of 25 MW, in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, is installed in the Philippines. And although early this week, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo secured a commitment from Denmark to help expand the facility, the country is still a long way from effectively exploiting its substantial wind energy potential, or even the government-set target of a mere 417 MW from wind within ten years.

According to the ‘Global Wind Energy Outlook 2006’ report, one third of the world’s electricity can be supplied by wind power. The report also highlights the expansion of wind power worldwide as a key to stopping climate change. Wind turbine capacity implemented on this scale would save 113 billion tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere by 2050.

"Wind power is the most attractive solution to the world’s energy challenges. It is clean and fuel-free. Moreover, wind is indigenous and enough wind blows across the globe to cope with the ever increasing electricity demand. This report demonstrates that wind technology is not a dream for the future--it is real, it is mature, and it can be deployed on a large scale," said Arthouros Zervos, GWEC´s Chairman. "The political choices of the coming years will determine the world’s environmental and economic situation for many decades to come."

"Wind power will significantly reduce CO2 emissions, which is key in the fight against dangerous climate change. Wind power will also address other challenges crucial to developing countries like the Philippines such as security of energy supply and the increasing volatility of fossil fuel prices," added Inventor.

http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/en/news/philippine-wind-power-potentia

Points taken @juicydude....that's why we need to develop our geothermal resources. ^^

Oil rises above $ 95 on new worries





SINGAPORE, Feb. 19 (Reuters) — Oil rose on Tuesday, as the market grappled with worries over an economic slowdown in the United States and supply concerns from Venezuela and Nigeria.


London Brent crude rose 34 cents to $ 95.25 a barrel by 0735 GMT, while US crude was up 22 cents at $ 96.33 on the Globex electronic trading platform, from $ 96.11 at 1812 GMT the previous day.


http://www.mb.com.ph/BSNS20080220117394.html

TransCo, GNPower seek ERC nod to fasttrack transmission line (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=110141)

By DONNABELLE L. GATDULA
The Philippine Star

State-owned National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) and GNPower Co. Ltd. have sought the approval of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to fasttrack the construction of the Hermosa-Limay transmission line.

The acceleration of the transmission project will allow the two power firms to start the operation of 600-megawatt (mw) Mariveles coal plant in Bataan.

GNPower is a partnership between Power Partners Ltd. Co. and fund manager PMR Holding Corp. The group is composed of American and Nauran investors. TransCo, on the other hand, is a spin-off company of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) that runs the country’s transmission highway.

Scheduled to be operational in 2010, the Hermosa-Limay will allow simultaneous full dispatch of the proposed Mariveles coal plant of GN Power.

GNPower is planning to begin the construction of the P44 billion Mariveles coal plant this year.

The operation of the power plant is seen as a concrete step in averting a power crisis that could hit Luzon grid by 2010.

The coal-fired facility will sell power to 10 distribution utilities and Lopez-controlled Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is looking at securing 100 mw of power supply from GNPower that would serve the electricity needs of its customers.

At present, GNPower has an agreement with three local suppliers for the supply of low rank coal for the coal plant. It did not disclose the identities of the coal suppliers.

GNPower is also the first licensed retail electricity supplier (RES) approved by ERC to legally engage in marketing activities for its retail electricity supply business and secure supply contracts with prospective end-users.

Reyes turns attention to nuke power

By Marilou Guieb
Correspondent

The Business Mirror

BAGUIO CITY—Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes led a two-day planning session here for a road map on clean energy with representatives from the clean air and energy sectors.

But while the thrust of the planning session was in relation to climate change, Reyes gave a good deal of attention to the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in a press conference. The government is revisiting the nuclear power plant for its potential to generate cheaper power in the light of rising oil prices, Reyes said, explaining that the interest for cheaper power sources is to maintain the country’s industrial competitiveness.

Three weeks ago an eight-man team from an international regulatory board for all nuclear plants came to study the site in preparation for a feasibility study which Reyes said could take two years. Should the study say that operating the Bataan nuclear plant will serve as a feasible alternative source of power, the preparation to make the project work will entail about seven years of work.

Reyes said Korea had built a similar nuclear plant around the same time the Bataan nuclear plant was mothballed in 1986, and this has been operational for the last 20 years; its estimated total life span is 30 years. While Korea was reaping the benefits of its nuclear-energy investment, Reyes said the Philippines has just finished off paying the $2.3- billion cost of the plant to Westinghouse in April of last year without enjoying a single kilowatt from it.

He acknowledged that while such a nuclear power plant will not emit any greenhouse gas, there remains the problem of disposal of uranium waste. But he quickly added that newer and better safety standards will be developed over time.

Reyes also preferred to cite the case of Korea’s nuclear power plant, which posed no problem in its operation, to reverse the fear of a nuclear leak, as in the case of the Chernobyl accident in 1986.

Reyes also mapped out broad plans for renewable energy in a 20-year program (2010 to 2030), in a bid to determine by how much yet the country should be dependent on coal and oil-based energy sources, or a percentage mix of finite and renewable sources.

According to him, wind, solar, biomass, ocean energy, hydro and geothermal are areas looked into for development of renewable energy sources.

He said that while wind energy is a mature technology in Europe, there is yet no breakthrough in the Philippines, where only one wind farm, in Bangui town in Ilocos Norte, exists, producing 25 MW. The country is also waiting for the technology for solar energy sourcing to mature, despite the Laguna-based Philippine Sun Power’s manufacturing solar panels.

Ocean energy, which depends on ocean depths temperature and the movements of waves, is also an option being studied by a national task force on climate change and energy.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/02252008/nation05.html

VECO to offer prepaid electricity in Q3
http://www.bworldonline.com/BW022808/content.php?id=044

CEBU CITY — The Visayan Electric Co., Inc. (VECO) is aiming to offer prepaid electricity to its so-called lifeline customers in the third quarter of the year.

Jaime Jose Y. Aboitiz, VECO senior vice-president, said the system will initially be offered to customers who consume the minimum 50 kilowatt-hours or less a month as well as to customers "who are expensive to keep."

He was referring to customers who repeatedly fail to pay their bills on time and frequently get their power lines disconnected.

"They’re expensive to keep because our people have to keep visiting their homes to disconnect and, then later, reconnect their lines. It takes only P10 to get reconnected and we spend so much for these activities," Mr. Aboitiz said.

With a prepaid electricity system, which will be similar to the prepaid mobile phone system, Mr. Aboitiz said such customers will have the opportunity to purchase electricity based on their financial capacity.

He estimated that about 80,000 of VECO’s 275,000 customers are lifeline customers.

VECO will send a team to South Africa to observe the prepaid electricity system there in preparation for its own prepaid system.

"We will also invite the ERC [Energy Regulatory Commission] to join the trip because this is new, even for the ERC, and we want them to see for themselves how this works," Mr. Aboitiz said.

The company also wants to learn from the experience of the Leyte II Electric Cooperative (Leyeco) which pioneered the system in 2004. Leyeco has deployed 2,500 prepaid electric meters in Tacloban City and Palo town in Leyte and is preparing to acquire 500 more prepaid meters.

VECO, which is owned by the Aboitiz and Garcia families, is the second biggest private utility in the country. It serves Metro Cebu and neighboring towns. — Marites S. Villamor

SPECIAL REPORT: BIOFUELS: BANE OR BOON?

Philippines first to have, last to use biofuels

By Conrad M. Cariño, Senior Desk Editor

The Manila Times

First of two parts

Plant oils or extracts for fuel are old hat to Filipinos. But having a law for the general use of biofuels for transport—the Biofuels Act of 2006—is very new.

The steep rise of crude oil prices worldwide and concerns over greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles made the use of biofuels here an urgent matter.

In his book “Coconut, The Philippines’ Money Tree,” Dr. Renato Labadan said among the factors that should make the government adopt biofuels is the dwindling world oil supplies made faster by India’s and China’s insatiable hunger for crude.

“Petroleum analysts worldwide are one in saying that the world crude oil supply is near its halfway mark. Unless new oil fields are discovered and developed, the crude oil supply will be critical within the next 40 years apart from becoming prohibitively expensive,” Labadan, one of the most prominent scientific minds in the country, wrote in his book that discusses the wonders of the coconut tree, including its being a source for biofuels.

The international environmental group, Greenpeace, has been warning of the escalation and speed of global warming caused by the unabated release of greenhouse gas emissions from machinery and engines running on fossil fuels.

An article (accessible in www.*sciencemag.org) written by Jorn Scharlemann and William Laurance quoted researchers who said, “Most [21 out of 26] biofuels reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 30 percent relative to gasoline.”

And citing a study from the Asian Institute of Petroleum Studies Inc., the Department of Agriculture said the reduction in fuel consumption as a result of the enactment of the Biofuels Act would save the country the P17.3 billion a year spent on imported oil stock.

Nothing new

When it comes to research on biofuels, the Philippines can actually boast of being ahead of its Asian neighbors.

The use of biofuels in the Philippines started even before the Japanese occupation, according to the article “The Philippine experience in substitutes for gasoline and diesel,” written by Filipino scientists and inventor Felix Maramba and published in the book The Filipinas Journal (published in 1981 by the Filipinas Foundation Inc.).

“At this time [Second World War], gasoline was the standard motor oil fuel, but in 1922 some sugar centrals started using an alcohol-gasoline blend for locomotives and trucks hauling cranes,” Maramba said in his article. “The La Carlota Sugarcane Experiment Station started using straight hydrous alcohol as motor fuel in 1928. The sugarcane farms followed suit; so did some bus companies.”

In the same article, Maramba said studies on the use of alcohol as fuel substitute was backed by practice.

“The group published no fewer than 10 scientific papers on the subject, the first in 1931. Results of their experiments showed that alcohol has a higher octane rating or anti-knock property than gasoline,” Maramba wrote.

The group referred to was led by Dr. Anastacio Teodoro of the College of Agriculture of the University of the Philippines. His doctoral thesis at Cornell University was about the use of alcohol as fuel.

During the Second World War, Maramba said the lack of fuel forced Filipinos to use straight hydrous alcohol for gasoline engines, and crude coconut oil for diesel engines.

And in the 1970s and 1980s, there were trials, studies and advocacies undertaken on the use of biofuels, primarily from ethanol and coconut oil.

Compared to the Filipinos who pioneered the use of biofuels before and during the war, today’s biofuel advocates seem conservative, especially if one takes into account the provisions of the Biofuels Act.

The law provides that two years after its effectivity, gasoline should have a minimum of 5-percent bioethanol, and after four years at least a 10-percent blend. For biodiesel, a minimum of 1-percent blend to diesel engine fuels is required within three months from its effectivity, and at least 2 percent after two years of its effectivity.

Nonetheless, the Arroyo administration has made the adoption of alternative sources of power, like biofuels, as one of its major programs to reduce the country’s dependence on imported oil stock.

The Energy department’s website states that “the Alternative Fuels Program is one of the five key components of the Arroyo Administration’s Energy Independence Agenda, which outlines the roadmap that will lead to the country’s attainment of 60 percent energy self-sufficiency by 2010.”

The program has four major subprograms: the biodiesel program, the bioethanol program, the natural gas vehicle program for public transport and a program which encourages the use of liquefied petroleum gas for vehicles. The Energy department also advocates the adoption of hybrid, fuel cell, hydrogen and electric vehicles.

“The goal is to develop indigenous and renewable energy fuels for long term energy security, which will be a pillar for our country’s sustainable growth,” the Energy department said.

To be continued

Source: http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/mar/03/yehey/top_stories/20080303top6.html

Oro first LGU to implement DOE initiative to fight climate change (http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/54065)
Mike Banos
March 03, 2008

Cagayan de Oro City has marked another milestone by becoming the first local government unit in the Philippines to adopt the Roadway Lighting Guidelines under the Philippine Energy Efficient Lighting Market Transformation Project (Pelmatp).

Energy Secretary Angelo R. Reyes said the memorandum of agreement between the Department of Energy (DOE), Cagayan Electric Power & Light Co. (Cepalco) and the city government formalizes acceptance of the guidelines to standardize energy saving street lighting for national, secondary and tertiary roads within its area.

"These guidelines are aimed at providing policies and strategies for designing, operating and maintaining road lighting for use by administrators, contractors, designers, engineers and others involved in similar activities, with the view of achieving energy efficiency and savings while ensuring road visibility and safety," said Noel N. Verdote, Pelmatp project manager.

Verdote said the guidelines are part of the DOE's initiatives through the Pelmatp, with the support of the United Nations Development Programme - Global Environmental Facility (UNDP-GEF), to address the barriers to the widespread use of energy-efficient lighting systems in the Philippines.

Reyes said the guideliens are being piloted in Barangay Macabalan where 50 units of 70 watt high pressure sodium (HPS) lamps replaced 250 watt HPS lamps resulting in savings of 80% to the LGU in the operating expenses for the same amount of light cast by the original lamps.

The Institute of Integrated Electrical Engineers of the Philippines Cagayan de Oro Chapter (IIEE) through its President Robert Cruz and Raymund Marquez, IIEE 2007 National President and Marvin Caseda intially conducted an energy audit of the streetlighting installed in the area.

Prior to the signing of the MOA, Cruz presented the potential savings if the 50 pieces of 250 watts high pressure sodium (HPS) now installed were replaced with 70 watts HPS without sacrificing the required illumination level. The replacement will yield at least Php 236,500.00 annual saving for the local government. The replacement cost of about Php 350,000.00 will be recovered in 18 months (1.5 years).

The guidelines cover the specification of standard electrical systems (lamps and ballasts, gounding, voltage drop, contols, metering, electrical works & materials), structural systems (poles, mast arms or mounting brackets, foundations and pads), Lighting Parameters (lighting arrangement, mounting height, spacing, overhang, design considerations), Lighting Considerations, Luminaire Requirements (luminaire, standards, design & construction features, electrical rating, optical assembly, control gear and wiring, tests & inspections), high pressure sodium lamp requirements (standards, design/construction features/electrical rating, tests and inspections), Photoelectric Controls Requirements (standards, service conditions, electrical features) and Tunnels and Underpasses.

Verdote said the guidelines were developed thru a consensus development process facilitated by the Institute of Integrated Electrical Engineers of the Phils., Inc. (IIEE), Philippine Lighting Industry Association (PLIA) and the Energy Management Association of the Philippines (ENMAP) together with various experts, professionals and stakeholders.

"The guidelines aim to bring down the street lighting costs of LGUs without compromising safety of motorists and pedestrians," he noted.

Reyes disclosed that Cepalco and the city government recently settled a long-standing dispute over the latter's outstanding bills with the utility incurred mainly as a result of energy intensive lighting in city hall and street lighting.

With the widespread adoption of these guidelines by LGUs, Reyes said the country could be creating "virtual power plants" by making as much as 80% of the energy saved from street lights available for other purposes.

He noted that this initiative would also considerably reduce the emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere which is now wreaking havoc across the globe because of the resulting climate change.

For some reason, streetlights have the highest power rate in Region 10 at P6.88-7.23 per kilowatt hour, figures from the National Transmission Corporation (Transco) show.

According to Verdote, a number of strategies and programs have been put in place to remove barriers to the widespread use of energy efficient lighting systems including lowering the cost of CFLs and the publication of the Guidelines Energy Conserving Design on Buildings, among others.

Manila's geothermal firm says to bid for two plants (http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSMAN27817020080304)
Tue Mar 4, 2008 2:58am EST

MANILA, March 4 (Reuters) - Philippine geothermal firm PNOC-Energy Development Corp (EDC.PS: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday it will bid for two geothermal plants the government is selling in June.

PNOC-EDC told the Philippine Stock Exchange it was interested in buying the 289 megawatt Tiwi plant in Albay province, and the 458.5 mw Makban plant in Laguna and Batangas provinces, all situated on the main island of Luzon.

Bidding for the joint sale of the geothermal plants will be on June 4.

The state agency overseeing the sale of the government's power assets has attached power supply contracts to the sale to attract more bidders for the Tiwi and Makban plants.

PNOC-EDC, which was bought by a local power producer First Gen (FGEN.PS: Quote, Profile, Research) in a $1.35-billion auction last November, has a total capacity of 1,199 MW, or around 60 percent of the country's geothermal capacity.

The company earlier said it was allocating 10.8 billion pesos ($265 million) for capital spending this year and an annual average 5.6 billion pesos for the next five years, to be funded mostly by local borrowing.

The planned capital outlay for 2008 excludes funds for acquisitions this year. PNOC-EDC plans to bid for geothermal plants with a total capacity of 1,155 mw up for sale this year.

The Philippines has 22 active volcanoes and is the world's second largest producer of geothermal energy after the United States, as it sits on the seismically active Ring of Fire that also includes Indonesia.

SPECIAL REPORT: BIOFUELS: BANE OR BOON?

Philippines first to have, last to use biofuels

By Conrad M. Cariño, Senior Desk Editor

The Manila Times

First of two parts

^^ I guess the article quoted below is the continuation...

Wednesday, March 05, 2008


SPECIAL REPORT: BIOFUELS: BANE OR BOON? (http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/mar/05/yehey/top_stories/20080305top5.html)

Coconut, ‘malunggay’ present
golden opportunity to farmers

By Conrad M. Cariño, Senior Desk Editor

Coconut and malunggay—among the biofuel crops that are environment-friendly and do not compete directly with food sources—are the “champions.”

While coconut can be considered the perennial champion as a biofuel source, malunggay can emerge as the new champ.

The country today has more than 324 million coconut trees planted in more than three million hectares of lands, with 16 million more to be planted in the next one to three years under the ambitious planting program of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA).

A coconut tree, two to three years after being planted, can produce nuts for a maximum of 50 years. And with advances in the development of high-yielding breeds and the discovery that salt can increase nut yields, propagating coconut for biofuel production can be very feasible for the country and profitable for farmers and growers.

The wonder is that coconut is not “choosy” for it for it can be planted in almost any type of soil, including the sandy soils of seashores where vegetables and corn cannot be grown.

Proven history of coconut oil

The use of coconut as biofuel or burning oil has also been well established in the Philippines, even before scientific studies were done.

Philippine Coconut Authority documents show that the use of coconut oil in household lamps dates back to the Spanish era.

During the Japanese occupation, coconut oil-powered tractors and bulldozers were used to build airfields. With the low supply of diesel, some rice mills had to used coconut oil.

The authority strongly campaigned for the wider use of coconut oil as diesel substitute or additive many years before the enactment of the Biofuels Act of 2006.

In 1977, the authority in cooperation with the University of the Philippines tested with success the use of 100-percent coconut oil on a jeepney with a diesel engine.

And in 1982, coconut oil as 100-percent fuel or mixed with diesel was tested successfully on buses operated by the Metro Manila Transit Corp. and Pantranco. Tests done on trains of the Philippine National Railways, the stationary power plants of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the trucks and boats of the Philippine Navy were all also successful.

The government in 1982 was about to start, but desisted for some reason, using cocodiesel in some of the Napocor stationary power plants.

Nonetheless, interest in the use of coconut oil as the substitute for diesel or an additive never waned. Chemrez, a company that manufactures a biofuel additive that can be used also as a 100-percent replacement for diesel, has been exporting its products to Japan and foreign markets. It is promoting its coconut oil to motorists with diesel-powered vehicles. It continues to be at the forefront of biodiesel development.

Not only will the use of coconut oil as biofuel benefit the environment—it will also provide an alternative market for poor coconut farmers whose copra is now mostly bought for food processing, cosmetic and pharmaceutical purposes.

“The wider use of coconut oil as biofuel will stabilize or improve the price of copra because the demand for it [copra] will grow. That will give the poor coconut farmers better earnings,” a farmer member of the Farmer Sectoral Council, who asked not to be named, told The Manila Times. That council is a consultative body made up of representatives from the farming sector and part of the National Anti-Poverty Council.

To spur higher production, the Philippine Coconut Authority is urging coconut farmers to use common table salt to significantly increase yields—by as much as 20 percent.

The coconut tree is a marvel. Its other parts are also useful, particularly its inflorescence, from where the cocosap is extracted. Cocosap can be processed into cocosugar (which commands a high price in the US because it is safe for diabetics), vinegar and cocohoney.

The fiber from the coconut husk can be processed into geo-textiles (which is used to check corrosion) that are in high demand in China and other countries.

New biofuel champion

Like coconut, malunggay is not “choosy” about the type of soil it can grow in. And like the coconut tree, malunggay can be productive for up to 50 years from the time it starts producing pods.

The most useful parts of malunggay are the leaves and pods. The leaves, a popular vegetable, can also be made into tea and fortifier for animal and human feeds. The leaves are rich in vitamins and minerals. Doctors recommend it particularly to lactating mothers.

The oil is extracted from the pods. Malunggay oil has applications in food processing, pharmaceutical and cosmetics.

Early this year, a team of Masters of Business Administration students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) recommended the massive cultivation of malunggay (scientific name moringa oleifera) in the Philippines for biofuels.

The team studied the market outlook for malunggay oil as part of their partial requirement for the completion of the Global Entrepreneurship Laboratory Course under the MIT’s Sloan School of Management in Boston. Their study said the massive cultivation of malunggay for biofuels can generate million of jobs and help alleviate poverty in rural areas in the Philippines.

Studies done by the government show that a 10-hectare malunggay farm can earn P2 million in revenues during the first year, and from P3 to P4 million in the next years as the plant starts to increase its yield of seeds.

It is also easier to propagate malunggay compared to other crops. Scientists and farmers interviewed by The Manila Times said planting a malunggay seed one centimeter deep is all that is needed to start the plant growing.

Malunggay can also be planted alongside other crops, because it does not rob the soil of nutrients. And malunggay can thrive without the use of fertilizers or pesticides, although there are technologies that can convert the leaves of malunggay into organic fertilizer.

The humble tree can also be used for reforestation along slopes that are not too steep, or even in backyards where the soil is not conducive to planting traditional crops.

While the coconut tree is called “the tree of life” because of its many uses, malunggay is popularly called the “miracle tree” for its versatility.

But with the findings of the MIT students that malunggay oil can be used for biofuels, the humble tree could even become “the millionaire’s tree.”

Residents oppose
coal-fired plant in Iloilo

By Jonathan Mayuga
Correspondent


THOUSANDS of Ilongos on Tuesday reiterated their call on the government to stop the construction of a proposed 164-megawatt coal-fired power plant project in Iloilo, saying the project would only contribute to global warming.

They joined an ecumenical prayer rally in Iloilo City Wednesday, warning the government that if built, the plant would further lock the country in a dirty energy cycle for years to come.

Led by Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, the interfaith rally sends a strong signal to proponents of the coal-fired power plant that they are not welcome in the city. Hundreds of students from St. Paul’s University formed a ‘QUIT COAL’ sign to call on local and national government officials to reject coal.

The Philippines is ranked number one on the global climate risk index in 2007 because the country is in a typhoon belt, and many of the low-lying islands are under threat from sea level rise. Coal-fired power plants account for 36 percent of the country’s total CO2 emissions.

“Filipinos have realized that climate change is a real threat to the country and are rejecting coal, one of the major contributors to global climate change. People instead seek for better solutions offered by renewable energy from wind, sun or geothermal resources,” said Jasper Inventor, Climate and Energy Campaigner of Greenpeace Southeast Asia.

Four years ago, the people of Iloilo rejected a proposed coal-fired power plant in Banate, a town approximately 40 kilometers from Iloilo City.

Other communities across the country have also rejected proposed coal-fired power plants. In 2002, Negros booted out a proposed coal-fired power plant, a move that led to the declaration that the province is a model for 100-percent renewable energy development.

In 2006, the Philippine National Oil Corporation stopped its coal-fired power plant project in Isabela after opposition from residents.

Over the years, residents of Iloilo and nearby Negros province have joined Greenpeace in calling for a switch to clean energy use in the country.

The Philippines’s wind energy potential is estimated to meet seven times the country’s total energy demand. However, clean technologies such as wind, solar and modern biomass represent less than 0.2 percent of the overall Philippine power mix in spite of promises from the Arroyo administration to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“Instead of harnessing the growing public opposition to climate-damaging coal-fired power plants to help enable the shift towards greater use of renewable energy systems, the government sadly remains fixated on prolonging the country’s deadly addiction to polluting energy plants. Climate change is far too great a risk for Filipinos that coal should altogether be phased out of the country’s energy mix,” Inventor concluded.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03062008/nation05.html

RP signs $55-M biofuel
deals with US firms

By Jennifer A. Ng
Reporter
The Business Mirror

THE government, together with local firms, forged two agreements worth a combined $55 million with companies in renewable-energy sector of the United States to develop the bioethanol and coco-diesel industries in the Philippines.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap said the agreements were forged with US bioenergy firms FE Clean Energy and Global Renewable Energy Network Inc. (GREEN).

In simple signing ceremonies at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, officials of the Department of Agriculture, FE Clean Energy and Bronze Oak Clean Energy forged a letter of intent committing the two private firms to invest $30 million in the Philippines’ biofuel industry.

The Philippine Agricultural Development and Commercial Corp. (PADCC), the DA’s implementing arm for its national biofuel-feedstock program, committed to provide the necessary support to ensure the success of the projects of FE and Bronze Oak, FE’s Philippine affiliate.

Last year FE Clean Energy began the construction of its bioethanol plant in San Carlos, Negros Occidental. The facility is expected to be operational in the last quarter of 2008.

During the signing ceremonies, Bronze Oak chairman Jose Maria Zabaleta Jr. informed Yap that the San Carlos City plant will be fully operational by December 2008, producing 125,000 liters per day of ethanol, or 40 million liters per year.

Under the new agreement forged with PADCC, FE Clean Energy will expand its operations in the country by constructing two more plants in Tarlac and Bukidnon.

PADCC also signed a separate agreement with GREEN Inc., represented by its president and chief executive officer Rafael Diego, to jointly develop 100 units of village-level biodiesel-processing facilities in coconut-producing areas in the country.

Agbon said the target areas under the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with GREEN Inc. include Quezon, Laguna, Batangas and several provinces in Bicol.

The project costs $25 million and is targeted to produce 1,000 liters per day of coconut methyl ester (CME) in 12 hours, and will initially benefit 5,000 families and 100 farmers organizations and cooperatives over a two-year period beginning 2008.

Under the MOA, PADCC will take charge of “identifying, qualifying through a process of selection and recommending” to GREEN Inc. the beneficiaries of up to 100 Greenstar 1000 biodiesel systems for biodiesel production.

GREEN Inc. will take charge of finding financiers that will provide the resources necessary to supply, deliver and install these biodiesel systems.

Last year President Arroyo signed into law Republic Act 9367, or the Biofuels Act, which mandates the pre-blending of 1 percent CME or coco biodesel in diesel-fed vehicles and 5 percent of ethanol in gasoline-fueled ones.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03062008/economy02.html

Seaoil exec pushes use of 85%
ethanol blend to bring down cost

By Paul Anthony A. Isla
Reporter
The Business Mirror

THE recent increase in world oil prices has prompted independent oil player Seaoil Philippines Corp. to push for the use of an 85-percent ethanol blend on gasoline to bring down the cost of gasoline prices.

“We want to be able to promote E85 [85-percent blend] because that will bring the cost down. That means the cost will be similar to LPG, already almost P15 to P20 lower,” Glenn L. Yu, Seaoil president, said.

He added that at 10-percent ethanol blend, Seaoil is already giving a P2 discount in the price of ethanol-blended gasoline, which is the full extent of the price differential.

Yu said since Seaoil is able to transfer some of the savings to the consumers, the government should not push back the implementation of the biofuels since consumers are benefiting from the lower cost.

Yu said over a hundred of Seaoil stations are offering E10, or 10-percent blend.

Yu, however, said it is neutral because they are transferring the cost savings to the consumers and promoting performance benefits.

“Since it is cheaper than regular gasoline and the performance is better, we’re selling more. So that’s where we are reaping the benefits or profits. In essence, we are selling more than what we would normally do if we were selling gasoline,” Yu said.

He added that the image independent players have created through products with specifications that are superior to local refiners is another benefit that they are reaping.

As protection for the local biofuels industry players, administration Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri said he will also be proposing an increase in the import tariffs of ethanol to 20 percent should local production be commercially available.

Zubiri said a 1-percent import tariff on ethanol is imposed to jump-start the government’s biofuels program.

“Importing ethanol is one of the hindrances investors see right now. They remain wary that imported ethanol is cheaper and will make their return on investments take longer route,” said Zubiri.

He added that he assured prospective local ethanol producers that he will propose a 20-percent tariff on imported ethanol to protect local producers.

Zubiri noted that the Biofuels Act of 2006 mandates the use of indigenous sources as much as possible, however saying that it is not a permanent provision that says an oil company must blend locally sourced ethanol.

Zubiri said that, as much as possible, the National Biofuels Board will source locally produced biofuels.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03062008/economy03.html

b'z2;18822052"]^^ I guess the article quoted below is the continuation...

Wednesday, March 05, 2008


SPECIAL REPORT: BIOFUELS: BANE OR BOON? (http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/mar/05/yehey/top_stories/20080305top5.html)

Coconut, ‘malunggay’ present
golden opportunity to farmers

By Conrad M. Cariño, Senior Desk Editor

Coconut and malunggay—among the biofuel crops that are environment-friendly and do not compete directly with food sources—are the “champions.”

While coconut can be considered the perennial champion as a biofuel source, malunggay can emerge as the new champ.

The country today has more than 324 million coconut trees planted in more than three million hectares of lands, with 16 million more to be planted in the next one to three years under the ambitious planting program of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA).

A coconut tree, two to three years after being planted, can produce nuts for a maximum of 50 years. And with advances in the development of high-yielding breeds and the discovery that salt can increase nut yields, propagating coconut for biofuel production can be very feasible for the country and profitable for farmers and growers.

The wonder is that coconut is not “choosy” for it for it can be planted in almost any type of soil, including the sandy soils of seashores where vegetables and corn cannot be grown.

Proven history of coconut oil

The use of coconut as biofuel or burning oil has also been well established in the Philippines, even before scientific studies were done.

Philippine Coconut Authority documents show that the use of coconut oil in household lamps dates back to the Spanish era.

During the Japanese occupation, coconut oil-powered tractors and bulldozers were used to build airfields. With the low supply of diesel, some rice mills had to used coconut oil.

The authority strongly campaigned for the wider use of coconut oil as diesel substitute or additive many years before the enactment of the Biofuels Act of 2006.

In 1977, the authority in cooperation with the University of the Philippines tested with success the use of 100-percent coconut oil on a jeepney with a diesel engine.

And in 1982, coconut oil as 100-percent fuel or mixed with diesel was tested successfully on buses operated by the Metro Manila Transit Corp. and Pantranco. Tests done on trains of the Philippine National Railways, the stationary power plants of the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the trucks and boats of the Philippine Navy were all also successful.

The government in 1982 was about to start, but desisted for some reason, using cocodiesel in some of the Napocor stationary power plants.

Nonetheless, interest in the use of coconut oil as the substitute for diesel or an additive never waned. Chemrez, a company that manufactures a biofuel additive that can be used also as a 100-percent replacement for diesel, has been exporting its products to Japan and foreign markets. It is promoting its coconut oil to motorists with diesel-powered vehicles. It continues to be at the forefront of biodiesel development.

Not only will the use of coconut oil as biofuel benefit the environment—it will also provide an alternative market for poor coconut farmers whose copra is now mostly bought for food processing, cosmetic and pharmaceutical purposes.

“The wider use of coconut oil as biofuel will stabilize or improve the price of copra because the demand for it [copra] will grow. That will give the poor coconut farmers better earnings,” a farmer member of the Farmer Sectoral Council, who asked not to be named, told The Manila Times. That council is a consultative body made up of representatives from the farming sector and part of the National Anti-Poverty Council.

To spur higher production, the Philippine Coconut Authority is urging coconut farmers to use common table salt to significantly increase yields—by as much as 20 percent.

The coconut tree is a marvel. Its other parts are also useful, particularly its inflorescence, from where the cocosap is extracted. Cocosap can be processed into cocosugar (which commands a high price in the US because it is safe for diabetics), vinegar and cocohoney.

The fiber from the coconut husk can be processed into geo-textiles (which is used to check corrosion) that are in high demand in China and other countries.

New biofuel champion

Like coconut, malunggay is not “choosy” about the type of soil it can grow in. And like the coconut tree, malunggay can be productive for up to 50 years from the time it starts producing pods.

The most useful parts of malunggay are the leaves and pods. The leaves, a popular vegetable, can also be made into tea and fortifier for animal and human feeds. The leaves are rich in vitamins and minerals. Doctors recommend it particularly to lactating mothers.

The oil is extracted from the pods. Malunggay oil has applications in food processing, pharmaceutical and cosmetics.

Early this year, a team of Masters of Business Administration students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) recommended the massive cultivation of malunggay (scientific name moringa oleifera) in the Philippines for biofuels.

The team studied the market outlook for malunggay oil as part of their partial requirement for the completion of the Global Entrepreneurship Laboratory Course under the MIT’s Sloan School of Management in Boston. Their study said the massive cultivation of malunggay for biofuels can generate million of jobs and help alleviate poverty in rural areas in the Philippines.

Studies done by the government show that a 10-hectare malunggay farm can earn P2 million in revenues during the first year, and from P3 to P4 million in the next years as the plant starts to increase its yield of seeds.

It is also easier to propagate malunggay compared to other crops. Scientists and farmers interviewed by The Manila Times said planting a malunggay seed one centimeter deep is all that is needed to start the plant growing.

Malunggay can also be planted alongside other crops, because it does not rob the soil of nutrients. And malunggay can thrive without the use of fertilizers or pesticides, although there are technologies that can convert the leaves of malunggay into organic fertilizer.

The humble tree can also be used for reforestation along slopes that are not too steep, or even in backyards where the soil is not conducive to planting traditional crops.

While the coconut tree is called “the tree of life” because of its many uses, malunggay is popularly called the “miracle tree” for its versatility.

But with the findings of the MIT students that malunggay oil can be used for biofuels, the humble tree could even become “the millionaire’s tree.”

good think about malunngay you just need the seeds to make biofuel & you can use the leaves for consumpiton " a cup of malunggay soup is equal to 2 glasses of milk :cheers:

Seaoil exec pushes use of 85%
ethanol blend to bring down cost

By Paul Anthony A. Isla
Reporter
The Business Mirror

THE recent increase in world oil prices has prompted independent oil player Seaoil Philippines Corp. to push for the use of an 85-percent ethanol blend on gasoline to bring down the cost of gasoline prices.

“We want to be able to promote E85 [85-percent blend] because that will bring the cost down. That means the cost will be similar to LPG, already almost P15 to P20 lower,” Glenn L. Yu, Seaoil president, said.

He added that at 10-percent ethanol blend, Seaoil is already giving a P2 discount in the price of ethanol-blended gasoline, which is the full extent of the price differential.

Yu said since Seaoil is able to transfer some of the savings to the consumers, the government should not push back the implementation of the biofuels since consumers are benefiting from the lower cost.

Yu said over a hundred of Seaoil stations are offering E10, or 10-percent blend.

Yu, however, said it is neutral because they are transferring the cost savings to the consumers and promoting performance benefits.

“Since it is cheaper than regular gasoline and the performance is better, we’re selling more. So that’s where we are reaping the benefits or profits. In essence, we are selling more than what we would normally do if we were selling gasoline,” Yu said.

He added that the image independent players have created through products with specifications that are superior to local refiners is another benefit that they are reaping.

As protection for the local biofuels industry players, administration Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri said he will also be proposing an increase in the import tariffs of ethanol to 20 percent should local production be commercially available.

Zubiri said a 1-percent import tariff on ethanol is imposed to jump-start the government’s biofuels program.

“Importing ethanol is one of the hindrances investors see right now. They remain wary that imported ethanol is cheaper and will make their return on investments take longer route,” said Zubiri.

He added that he assured prospective local ethanol producers that he will propose a 20-percent tariff on imported ethanol to protect local producers.

Zubiri noted that the Biofuels Act of 2006 mandates the use of indigenous sources as much as possible, however saying that it is not a permanent provision that says an oil company must blend locally sourced ethanol.

Zubiri said that, as much as possible, the National Biofuels Board will source locally produced biofuels.

Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03062008/economy03.html

this is really good! currently the ratio is 5% ethanol/biofuel -85% gasoline

CEPALCO’S 1MWP PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER PLANT (http://www.cepalco.com.ph/solar.php)

The developing world’s first and largest (at the time of its inauguration in 2004) on-grid solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant, the 1MWp polycrystalline silicon-based PV plant and connected with the distribution network of Cagayan Electric Power & Light Co., Inc. (CEPALCO) in Cagayan de Oro City, has completed its third year of commercial operations with greater than expected annual energy production. From the start of tis commercial operations on September 26, 2004, the PV plant has exported to CEPALCO a total of 4,169,100 kWh or an average of 1,389,700 annually, which is 10% higher than the expected annual energy generation of 1,261,400 kWh. At its current generating capacity, the PV plant supplies the equivalent requirement of no less than 900 CEPALCO residential customers.

CEPALCO’s 1MWp plant, with installed costs close to 5.3 Million US Dollars, uses 6,500 solar panels on 2 hectares of land and was partially funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) which was facilitated by the World Bank through the International Finance Corporation. The GEF fund is a loan that turns into grant after five years of successful operation of the PV plant by CEPALCO. The turnkey contract was awarded to Sumitomo Corporation of Japan. Sharp of Japan manufactured the PV modules while Sansha manufactured the inverters. The balance of system components were procured locally.

The PV plant is designed to be operated in conjunction with the 7MW run-of-the-river hydro plant owned by CEPALCO subsidiary company, Bubunawan Power Company. Being one of a kind, the PV plant has already been visited by over 10,000 students and visitors both local and as well as foreign renewable energy enthusiasts since it started operations.

Gaining from the experience, CEPALCO now plans to embark into an even larger solar park within its service territory. The envisioned solar park shall make use of a 30-hectare lot within the First Cagayan de Oro Business Park in Villanueva, Misamis Oriental, some 30 minutes east of Cagayan de Oro City.

Pre-feasibility study of the proposed PV plant indicates that it will be able to supply the CEPALCO distribution network with not less than 14,000,000 kWh of electricity annually, which is equivalent to not less than 30,000 barrels of fuel oil per year. The proposed PV plant, with a total installed capacity of at least 10-MWp, shall be constructed over a period of at least five years and shall use the best available solar technology in the market. The phased-in construction strategy will enable CEPALCO to capitalize on the increasing efficiency but decreasing costs of solar cells, which currently command not less than 50% of the PV plant’s installed costs. It will also cushion the impact of generation costs on CEPALCO’s customers.

If implemented according to plans, the first phase of the proposed 30-hectare solar park shall be commissioned by 2012 to augment the expected shortfall of firm capacity in the Mindanao Grid.

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x287/GearX_2007/another/tourism/solar1.jpg
1MW Photovoltaic Power Plant, Barangay Indahag, Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines

Thursday, March 06, 2008


US companies to invest
in RP biofuel ventures

By Ira Karen Apanay Reporter

TWO American companies in the renewable energy sector will tie up with Filipino investors to develop the Philippines’ emerging bioethanol and coco-diesel industries, the Department of Agriculture said on Wednesday.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said these job-generating investments worth $55 million will come from FE Clean Energy and Global Renewable Energy Network (GREEN) Inc.

“We recognize the indispensable role that private capital play in developing our emerging industries, such as the biofuels sector, which will not only comply with our commitment to promote clean, renewable energy, but will also reduce our dependence on dollar-draining imported fuel sources,” Yap said.

Agreements pertaining to the joint venture were signed at the Philippine Embassy in Washington, with Yap leading the Philippine trade mission.

Marriz Agbon, president of state-run Philippine Agricultural Development and Commercial Corp. (PADCC), Francisco Hoyos, vice-chairman of Connecticut-based FE Clean Energy, and Jose Maria Zabaleta Jr., Bronzeoak Clean Energy chairman, forged a letter of intent committing the firms to invest $30 million in the Philippines’ biofuel industry with the goal of partly supplying the domestic market as provided for in the Biofuels Act of 2006. Bronzeoak is the Philippine unit of FE Clean Energy.

Under the agreement, PADCC would provide the necessary support to ensure the success of the projects.

FE Clean Energy began building its bioethanol plant in San Carlos, Negros Occidental, last year and expects to open this facility in the last quarter of this year.

Zabaleta said the San Carlos City plant will be fully operational by December, producing 125,000 liters per day of ethanol or 40 million liters per year.

FE Clean Energy will expand its operations in the country by constructing two more plants in Tarlac and Bukidnon.

PADCC also signed a separate agreement with GREEN, represented by its president and chief executive officer Rafael Diego, to jointly develop 100 units of village-level biodiesel processing facilities in coconut-producing areas in the country.

Agbon said the project would involve areas in Quezon, Laguna, Batangas and several provinces in Bicol at a cost of $25 million.

The project is expected to produce 1,000 liters per day of coconut methyl ester in 12 hours and will initially benefit 5,000 families and 100 farmer organizations and cooperatives over a two-year period starting this year.

Under the agreement, PADCC will take charge of “identifying, qualifying through a process of selection and recommending” to GREEN the beneficiaries of up to 100 Greenstar 1000 biodiesel systems for bio-diesel production.

GREEN will take charge of finding financiers that will provide the resources necessary to supply, deliver and install these biodiesel systems.

http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/mar/06/yehey/business/20080306bus3.html

Transco posts 7.6% increase in power-delivery service last year

By Paul Anthony A. Isla
Reporter
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/0307&082008/economy05.html

GOVERNMENT-RUN National Transmission Corp. (Transco) said Thursday its power delivery to the country increased by 7.6 percent to 110,234.3 megawatt-months (MW-months) from 102,454.1 MW-months.

Power delivery, measured in MW-months, refers to the sum of Transco’s monthly billing demands (12 months rolling average) for 2007.

Arthur N. Aguilar, Transco president and chief executive, said the recorded power-delivery level last year exceeded projections by 3.6 percent owing to the increase in power requirements coming from the franchise area of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), Transco’s largest customer.

Transco also cited the additional power requirements from other large utility customers and the entry of new customers.

“To ensure that customers’ power-delivery demands are met, we continue to upgrade and expand our transmission facilities and implement the best practices in operation and maintenance,” Aguilar said.

Transco’s Corporate Planning Group reported that power transmitted to the Luzon grid reached 82,404.8 MW-months, a notable 8.1-percent growth from the 2006 level of 76,265.3 MW-months.

Delivery to the Visayas and Mindanao grids likewise went up by 7.9 percent and 5 percent, respectively.

In the Luzon grid, Transco said the demand for power-delivery service in the Meralco franchise area, which accounts for 74 percent of the Luzon delivery, increased by 6,210.9 MW-months, or 11.3 percent, when compared with the 2006 level.

For this period, Transco said 61.8 percent of Meralco’s billed demand came from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and its independent power producers (IPPs), while the remaining 38.2 percent was supplied by the three Meralco IPPs.

Transco said the Napocor-generated power wheeled by Transco to Meralco went up by 17.1 percent, or by 5,501.4 MW-months, compared with the 2006 level.

Transco said that portion of the increase was attributed to the increase in power supply coming from the Napocor power plants, which are augmenting the supply of one of Meralco’s IPPs that stopped operations in August 2006.

Power-delivery service in Luzon outside Meralco’s franchise area went up by less than 1 percent in 2007.

In the case of distribution utilities (DUs), while North Luzon DUs posted positive growths, their counterparts in South Luzon decreased their power consumption.

Because of a series of typhoons that hit South Luzon and disrupted power supply to customers in the latter part of 2006, power delivery to DUs was almost flat, registering a total increase of only 1.2 percent, or just 218.6 MW-months from the 2006 level of 17,809.5 MW-months.

On the other hand, power-delivery service requirements of public and private economic zone customers reached 2,013.2 MW-months in 2007, a slight 1.3-percent decrease from the 2006 level of 2,040.3 MW-months.

The increase in the operations of Subic Enerzone Corp. and Baguio City Economic Zone and their corresponding power delivery growths of 11.5 percent and 9.8 percent, respectively, helped offset the lost portion of Transco’s delivery to another customer which started to draw power from a supplier off the grid in August 2006.

For nonutility customers, power delivery went up by less than 1 percent from the 2006 level of 3,106.1 MW-months due to the lower power demands from Transco’s major customers in the steel and chemical manufacturing industries.

In the Visayas grid power delivery climbed to 12,139.4 MW-months in 2007, up by 7.9 percent over the year-ago level of 11,247.5 MW-months.

Notable increases in the consumption of DUs, namely, Visayan Electric Co., Panay Electric Co., and Central Negros Electric Cooperative contributed greatly to the overall growth of demand in the grid.

Power generation from marine current
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03102008/special_feature05.html

The Philippines, through the help of the Italian government, is harnessing marine current for alternative source of energy.

The Italian government, through the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (Unido) and the Italian Embassy, and the Philippine government, through the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), have set the flow for the technology demonstration of the Italian Kobold turbine for marine current power generation in the Philippines.

The Cebu Strait was identified as the potential site for the installation of the Kobold technology.

LORENZO MATACENA (fifth from left) of Italy’s Ponte di Archimede (PDA), the developer of Kobold; Engr. Arthur Uy of CSC (fourth from left) and Alice Villanueva of FFSI (sixth from left) sign the agreement for the implementation of the Kobold turbine demonstration project. Flanking them are (from left) Felipe Pestano, FFSI; Italian Ambassador Rubens Ana Fidele, Science Secretary Estrella Alabastro; Dean Pestano, FFSI; Luciano Fulcie, PDA; Engr. Raul Sabularse, PCIERD deputy executive director; and Engr. Loreto Carasi, PCIERD project monitor.

Marine current at four meters a second is required by the Kobold to generate energy—which is equivalent to wind velocity of 136 kilometers/hour—is needed for the wind turbine to also generate power.

At present, the Kobold turbine is installed at the Messina Strait in Italy and is generating power of 50 kilowatts. The Philippines was chosen for the demonstration project because it is surrounded by coastal waters, a good resource for marine current power.

For the DOST, the project will be monitored by the Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development (PCIERD).

The DOST enlisted the Colorado Shipyard Corp. (CSC) and the Filipinas Fabricators and Sales Inc. (FFSI) for the project.

The agreement for the implementation of the demonstration project was signed on February 21 by Italy’s Ponte di Archimede (PDA), the developer of the Kobold represented by Lorenzo Matacena, engineer Arthur Uy of CSC and Alice Villanueva of FFSI.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/03102008/images/sci-pic02.jpg

Biomass plant to help ease power shortage in Negros

By Carla Gomez
Philippine Daily Inquirer (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20080322-125830/Biomass-plant-to-help-ease-power-shortage-in-Negros)
First Posted 14:29:00 03/22/2008

BACOLOD CITY, Negros Occidental -- The Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) signed on Tuesday a power supply agreement with the First Farmers Holding Corp., a bagasse biomass co-generation power plant in Talisay City, Negros Occidental, beginning October 2008.

Ceneco president Roberto Montelibano said the initial five megawatts from the First Farmers power plant, which could produce electricity using bagasse (sugarcane waste), would help cushion the effects of the power shortage now being felt in the Visayas grid.

Ceneco's coverage area that included Bacolod City has been experiencing brownouts in the last three days because of a supply shortage of up to 25 MW, Montelibano said.

Even with the power purchase agreement with FFHC, Montelibano said Ceneco would still have to purchase 40 MW from Kepco-Salcon Power Corp., a coal-fired power plant in Cebu, to meet the increasing power needs of its coverage area.

He said the Northern Negros Geothermal Power Plant in Bago City could produce only 5 MW and no other alternative power sources have been offered.

He also said that Ceneco would be willing to buy power from those opposing the purchase of power from Kepco if they could offer an alternative source.

Rosendo Lopez, FFHC vice president, said his firm's bagasse biomass co-generation power plant could produce 21 MW.

"We will be producing cheap renewable energy from sugarcane waste so it will not affect food security since we will still be producing sugar," Lopez said.

The P500-million FFHC power plant is targeted for commissioning in September and for commercial operation by October 2008.

Under the signed agreement, FFHC will sell 5 MW of power to Ceneco for two years from 2008 to 2010. The power supply from FFHC will be delivered to Ceneco through its existing 69 KV transmission line in Talisay City.

The FFHC selling price would be one percent less than the cost of power supplied by the National Power Corp (Napocor).

At current rates, the FFHC power cost would be about three centavos less per kilowatt-hour than that of Napocor, Montelibano said.

The plant could be entitled to carbon credits from the World Bank because the plant would produce renewable energy, FHC corporate secretary Rafael Lizares said.

Lizares urged government to provide more incentives to encourage all sugar mills on Negros Island to produce renewable energy for commercial use.

"If all 10 sugar mills in the island produce power for sale using bagasse, we will have no power shortage," Lizares said.

Montelibano said he asked another sugar mill to put up a similar project.

Montelibano said Ceneco has been requiring 100 MW for its current peak requirement but the figure could reach 120 MW after 2010.

Benguet electric co-op ready to trade at WESM
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/04032008/economy07.html
By Marilou Guieb


BAQUIO CITY—The Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) is now ready to enter trading in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) after the expiration of its 25-year contract with the National Power Corp. (Napocor) on March 25.

Beneco general manager Gerardo Verzosa and the Beneco board members were encouraged by a briefing given by Renato Balintec, general manager of Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative (Inec), about his successful and profitable participation in the WESM.

Inec was the second distributing utility of the three, out of 119 electrical cooperatives, that have participated in the WESM. Inec started trading with WESM on December 2006.

“Inec has invested about P9 million when it started to participate at the WESM in 2006… and now has P28 million in the bank,” said Balintec.

Beneco gets 68 percent of its supply from Napocor, 29 percent from Mirant and 3 percent from others.

In a projected cost comparison prepared by Beneco’s WESM specialist engineer Mario T. Gayao using as basis a November 2007 record of power distribution, it turns out that there can be a reduction of cost from P90,230,439 in sourcing power from Napocor and Mirant to P71,139,638.60 if what is sourced from Napocor was sourced from WESM.

That means a savings of P19,090,800.47, based on a total 24,556,111 kilowatt-hour (kWh) distribution for the month. The difference lies in the difference of P3.645 cost per kWh of the Napocor to the P2.600 of WESM, with Mirant staying constant.

The comparison also showed that if only 10 percent (of 17,767,111 kWh from Napocor based on the November sample presentation) was bought from WESM as required of a distributing utility, there would still be savings from P2.600 per kWh compared with the P3.6745 kWh of Napocor cost.

The WESM was developed and is operated by a joint undertaking of the Philippine Electricity Market Corp., the Department of Energy (DOE) and industry stakeholders and is required by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira).

It fulfills part of the rationale of the Epira due to the said limited capacity of the government to sustain future capital requirements for power; nontransparent power rates fail to show the true cost of power; and the need to introduce supply competition and customer choice.

Balintec explained to Beneco officials that Inec posted the required prudential requirement that serves as security payment deposit through the issuance of a standby letter of credit of P6.8 million based on the Inec monthly power bill of P70 million, and as time deposit earns an interest of about P27,000 a month.

Inec sources of power are Napocor and Northwind (starting July 2005) from which they buy at 7 percent less than Napocor price and is value-added tax free, and from the WESM.

“Inec has invested about P9 million when they started to participate at the WESM in 2006… and now has P28 million in the bank,” said Balintec.

But trading at the WESM is a challenge consisting of monitoring prices at lowest cost at which hour steadily.

If one plays the market well, the benefits can be huge such as buying power when kWh is at zero price. Balintec said that this happened in February 2007 when Inec bought 2 million kWh from WESM at zero price. Balintec said, though there are risks and birth pains involved, once the co-op has familiarized and learned to trade, there are also rewards in terms of lower rates.

Learning to play the WESM trade well redounds to a continuous reduction of power cost due to the zero price of WESM at certain hours and sometimes WESM price lower than Napocor.

Balintec said the trick lies in knowing at which hours WESM prices are lower than other sources. Balintec said this is the compliance of Inec to the Epira rule that a distributing utility shall supply electricity at the least cost to its customers within its franchise area.

Under the Epira, for the first five years from the establishment of the WESM, distribution utilities shall source at least 10 percent of its total demand from the spot market.

Subic power cost seen to drop by 50¢ this year
By Ma. Elisa P. Osorio
Monday, April 7, 2008
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008040614

The cost of power at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone is expected to drop by 50 centavos per kilowatthour (kwh) this year, a top Subic official said.

In an interview, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) administrator Armand C. Arreza said they are looking to lower the electricity rate to P4 per kwh from the current P4.50 per kwh.

He said this in line with the freeport’s goal to attract more foreign investors as locators cite high power costs as one of the reasons why they hesitate to put up businesses in the area.

Taiwan Cogeneration International Corp. (TCIC) has partnered with the Aboitiz group for the construction of a coal-fired power plant in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

“These power projects are crucial to the growth of the Subic Freeport and the local economy because they will help reduce the cost of electricity in Subic, as well as address a projected increase in power demand,” Arreza said.

According to Arreza, the move of the power companies will likewise help the area cope with the expected increase in investment projects in Subic.

“Investors worldwide are looking for investment sites with stable but cheap power supply, along with accessibility and security, investment perks and skilled manpower,” Arreza explained.

He said the recent order of President Arroyo to expand the coverage of Subic’s tax and duty-free regime will increase investment projects.

“You add to this equation the continuing growth of Clark Freeport, the completion of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, the full operation of Subic’s new container terminal and the Hanjin shipyard project, and you’d have an exponential growth in power demand here,” Arreza noted.

He said that with the expected influx of investments, a progressive power program has to be in place.

Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc. the Aboitiz-led joint venture with TCIC, will undertake the $420-million coal-fired power plant.

At the same time, the Subic Enerzone Corp., the operator of the power distribution system in the freeport, will implement a systems installation and rehabilitation project worth P210 million.

Data from Subic Enerzone showed that the power consumption in its Subic franchise area has been increasing over the past few years, with a total of 17.4 million kwh consumed last month.

“This is why we have to upgrade the power system in Subic and put up additional generation facilities on top of Subic’s total output of 130 megawatts, so that we could be more competitive,” Arreza said.

Subic Enerzone Corp., a consortium formed by Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Davao Light & Power Co., Mirant Philippines and San Fernando Electric Light & Power Co., is set to develop new substations, install new field and substation lines, improve switchyards, and install additional circuit breakers and power transformers.

As part of Subic Enerzone’s distribution management services agreement with the SBMA, the firm upgraded three power substations and other facilitiesin the Subic Freeport this year. These include a 25-MVA substation at Subic’s Cubi Point area, which was re-energized in October; a 27.5-MVA substation at Maritan Hill, also completed in October to provide reliable electric supply to companies in the nearby Subic Technopark, one of the biggest industrial areas in the Subic Freeport; and another substation at Leyte Wharf.

Visayas electricity spot market launch deferred -- official

INQUIRER.net
First Posted 17:42:00 04/08/2008

MANILA, Philippines -- The Department of Energy (DOE) has deferred the proposed launching of the Visayas Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

In a statement, Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes said that while the "Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMC), the governing body and market operator of the WESM, and its Market Management System (MMS) are technically prepared, we cannot discount the fact that in the Visayas, there is inadequate capacity both in the transmission and generation facilities."

The department's decision was based on the study conducted by the Intelligent Energy Systems (IES), a consultancy firm based in Australia. The DOE engaged the services of IES, through a grant from the World Bank-administered Policy and Human Resources Development (PHRD) fund, to assess the expansion of WESM in the Visayas.

In a special meeting convened by Reyes last March 29 among the heads of attached agencies, the department highlighted IES's final report which evaluated the market participants' readiness, system readiness, supply and demand situation, competition among traders, formulation of market power mitigating measures, provision of market information to all market participants, possible WESM Rules amendments, and development of a long-term plan for Financial Transmission Rights.

Reyes said that the DOE will carefully review the findings and recommendations of IES before coming up with a final decision.

"International experience has taught us that competitive markets should not begin its commercial operation in a tight reserve situation as this will give rise to a situation where all existing generators will end up with market power. Such conditions would be very difficult to administer successfully and may discredit the benefits of WESM," Reyes added.

The IES' final report cited that it is imperative that the DOE set into place structures to guarantee the proper conduct of participants and sufficient competition. The report also cited some regulatory issues and provisions of the WESM Rules that need to be reviewed, including the pricing of must run units and the processes for provision of market information to the market participants.

Read more (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20080408-129132/Visayas-electricity-spot-market-launch-deferred----official)

Meralco is known for manipulating the price of electricity distribution by over-charging the consumers.

First, Meralco had illegally charged its costumers with the company’s tax due to the government.

And now, Meralco is collecting a 58 centavos per kilowatt hour as “systems loss charge” to cover claimed pilferage and heat losses. We all know that it is their company’s technical/service fault why pilferage is rampant so why charge the diligently paying customer for a problem that Meralco has failed to deal with. This is illegal. Meralco’s customers have the right to take them to court for over-charging and price manipulation.

The Lopez’s controlled firm is obviously practicing monkey business to extort money from its costumers and has been using their own Media tentacles to scare critics, and justify their unfair price-fixing scheme.

ABS-CBN’s practice of discrediting the Philippine Government could also be a “reverse psychology” tactic to appear that they are at the same boat with the poor- sympathizing with the poor, like they are some kind of an underdog to cover-up their deceptive price manipulation and also, as a scare tactic against the government - that they have some kind of Media prowess to control politics so that the government will let them be (and continue their deception).

This kind of business entity is what make the Philippines poor and the Filipinos hopeless.

Boycott ABS-CBN and TFC now!


Double blackeye
HIDDEN AGENDA By Mary Ann Ll. Reyes
Sunday, May 4, 2008
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008050331

Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) Winston Garcia has just declared war against the Manila Electric Company.

Garcia laments that while GSIS owns 25 percent Meralco giving it four of the 11 seats in the board, its repeated request for access to certain Meralco documents has remained unheard. And unless Meralco listens, GSIS says it may be left with no choice but to go to court.

Among Meralco’s practices being questioned by Garcia is the 58 centavos per kilowatt hour being collected from customers as “systems loss charge” to cover claimed pilferage and heat losses.

Garcia claims, and to which we agree, that asking everyone to pay for electricity being stolen by other people is rather unfair. All of us are also being asked to pay for “systems losses,” another word for which is inefficiencies by Meralco in distributing power.

The prevailing public perception is that Meralco is neither cracking down on pilferage nor is it plugging distribution leakages so it can justify continuously charging its customers with this abominable “systems loss charge.”

As a stockholder, the GSIS deserves to know what’s happening. What really is being charged to us as systems loss?

If Meralco’s management is not being given the benefit of the doubt, it is because it has already been twice reprimanded by the Supreme Court, which ordered it to refund its customers: first in April 2003 to the tune of P28 billion; and then in 2006 for passing new charges to its customers without publicizing it as required by law.

In ordering Meralco to return what it had been overcharging its customers since 1994, the Supreme Court said “public utilities cannot be allowed to overcharge at the expense of the public and worse, they cannot complain that they are not overcharging enough.”

Meralco is likewise being questioned by GSIS for buying power from questionable and higher-priced sources.

To shed light on all these controversies, Meralco should open its books and disclose all contracts it has entered and is entering into, including its alleged purchase of a Bahamas-based firm which got Meralco’s reinsurance contract before passing it off to a Philippine-based insurance firm.

Here is a list of power plants here in the Philippines as of 2006

Region III


Angat Hydroelectric Power Plant

Magat Hydroelectric Power Plant

Masinloc Coal - Fired Thermal Power Plant

Pantabangan - Masiway Hydroelectric Power Plant

Region IV


Batangas Coal - Fired Thermal Power Plant

Region V


Bacon - Manito Geothermal Power Plant

Cawayan Hydroelectric Power Plant

Tiwi Geothermal Power Plant

Region VII


Amlan Hydroelectric Power Plant

Bohol Diesel Power Plant

Loboc Hydroelectric Power Plant

Power Barge 101 Thermal Power Plant

Power Barge 102 Thermal Power Plant

Power Barge 103 Thermal Power Plant

Power Barge 104 Thermal Power Plant

Region VIII


Leyte Geothermal Power Plant

Region X


Pulangui Hydroelectric Power Plant

Region XI


Agusan Hydroelectric Power Plant

Region XII


Agus 4 Hydroelectric Power Plant

Agus 5 Hydroelectric Power Plant

Agus 6 Hydroelectric Power Plant

Agus 7 Hydroelectric Power Plant

ARMM


Agus 1 Hydroelectric Power Plant

Agus 2 Hydroelectric Power Plant

We are sooo deficient in coal power plant. This is great. Practically most of the power supply in our country is renewable.:)

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/April/11/pix/GEO.jpg

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/May/09/pix/PLANTA.jpg
Northern Negros Geothermal Power Plant
Brgy. Mailum, Bago City, Negros Occidental

http://gerryruiz.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_6913w.jpg

http://gerryruiz.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_6910w.jpg

http://gerryruiz.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_6976w.jpg

http://gerryruiz.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_6929w.jpg

http://gerryruiz.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_6928w.jpg

Leyte Geothermal Power Plants

One of the Largest Geothermal Plants in the World

Photo courtesy of Gerry Ruiz
http://gerryruiz.wordpress.com/home/
visit his site now!

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/April/11/pix/GEO.jpg

Atienza authorizes tree cutting permit
IN BUFFER ZONE WITH CONDITIONS
BY CARLA GOMEZ


Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Jose Atienza Jr. yesterday confirmed having authorized the DENR regional director for Western Visayas to process the application of the Philippine National Oil Co.-Energy Development Corp. for a Special Tree Cutting Permit in the 169-hectare buffer zone of the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park in Bago City.

Atienza, in a memorandum dated Feb. 20, directed the regional director Lormelyn Claudio to process the Special Tree Cutting Permit of PNOC-EDC. He cited the merit of the request in terms of the production of significant geothermal energy that is considered as a better alternative to fossil fuel based power source, and pursuant to existing forestry and environmental regulations.

Atienza, however, told the DAILY STAR in a telephone interview that this will be subject to certain terms and conditions.

The PNOC-EDC has been seeking the concurrence of the Negros Occidental Sangguniang Panlalawigan to its entry into the buffer zone in Bago City. The purpose is to tap more geothermal energy for its Northern Negros Geothermal Power Plant that, so far, only produces about 5 megawatts from an earlier projection of 49 megawatts.

The Diocese of Bacolod and some environmentalists are opposing the PNOC-EDC entry into the buffer zone saying it would destroy an important biodiversity-rich area.
The Negros Occidental SP sought the opinion of the DENR on the matter and, on Wednesday, was sent a copy of a memorandum issued by Atienza on Feb. 20 by the DENR Undersecretary for Staff Bureaus.

In his memorandum, Atienza said the request of PNOC-EDC for a Special Tree Cutting Permit has been reviewed carefully by the DENR, particularly its Forest Management Bureau and the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau.

While it is recognized that this is an important energy project being pursued by the Philippine government, the site is also considered an important biodiversity-rich area as seen from the inventory results and as a declared buffer zone of MKNP, he said.

However, careful evaluation of the Environmental Management Plan prepared by PNOC indicate adequacy and sustainability of mitigating measures for the impact of developments to the flora and fauna of the buffer zone of MKNP, Atienza added..

In addition to existing environmental and MKNP laws and regulations, Atienza said that the following conditions shall be highlighted in the permit:

*The cutting operation shall at all times be under the direct supervision of the MKNP protected area supervisor and the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office concerned for proper compliance of the permittee to the terms and conditions of the permit;

*The logs or timber to be removed from the trees cut shall be turned over to the MKNP Protected Area Management Board for proper management and disposition in accordance with pertinent regulation on the matter, the proceeds of which shall accrue to the Integrated Protected Area Fund of MKNP;

*The MKNP-PAMB shall closely monitor all aspects of geothermal development operations; and

*The enhanced mitigating measures shall include provisions for monitoring of any spill-over effects on the critically endangered, Rafflesia speciosa, and its host species.

The Undersecretary for Staff Bureaus sent the Memorandum of Atienza to the SP in response to its query on whether the Sanggunian endorsement is necessary or not viz-aviz the application of PNOC-EDC for a tree cutting permit in the buffer zone.

Considering that the LGU is a member of the MKNP-PAMB that has already given its concurrence to the request for a cutting permit, a separate LGU clearance is deemed no longer necessary, the DENR response to the SP said.

Vice Gov. Emilio Yulo III said the SP will study the DENR response before coming up with its position.
Yulo said he did not know why the PNOC-EDC asked for the SP concurrence if Atienza had already acted on the matter.

Gov. Isidro Zayco said he was informed that the reason why Central Negros Electric Cooperation and the Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative signed contracts to buy KEPCO coal-fired power from Cebu was current low production level of the PNOC-EDC.

Zayco said he hopes that when PNOC-EDC starts producing more power in Bago City will sell its power in Negros Occidental before selling it elsewhere.*CPG

Jatropha biofuels venture inked
BY RENE GENOVE

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo witnessed the signing of the Jatropha Biofuel joint venture agreement between the European Firm Global Tree Trust and the Herminio Teves Company Inc., at the Negros Oriental Convention Center, in Dumaguete City yesterday.

The joint venture is investing millions of pesos in developing a large-scale jatropha plantation and vermin (earthworm) culture in Tanjay Valley, a former hotbed of insurgency in the southern part of Negros Oriental.

The jatropha plantation which is located within the boundaries of Valencia, Sta. Catalina, Siaton and Dauin towns, covers an area of more than 24,000 hectares.

Organizers showed video presentations on various projects, including jatropha and vermin culture, and multi-cropping for jatropha and cassava initiated by private groups.

A Korean investment firm, Biogreen, had invested in the plantation site. A cassava food processing and jatropha plant facilities have been constructed at the site.

Negros Oriental former Rep. Herminio Teves also gave the President a copy of the Joint Venture Agreement on a massive propagation of jatropha plant as an alternative source of energy before the thanksgiving luncheon party hosted by the provincial government of Negros Oriental to celebrate his the 88th birthday.

Studies conducted by the Alternative Fuels Corporation show that 10 kilos of oil extract from ripe jatropha seeds can produce one liter of clean and environment-friendly diesel.

Before the luncheon party, Teves also presented to the President a hybrid prototype pick-up car fueled by jatropha diesel fuel with pollution-free exhaust fumes.*RG

www.visayandailystar.com

Zubiri wants Negros to be biofuels centerSAYS LITO IS ACTING NBB HEAD
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri Saturday called on oil firms to moderate their greed amid the impending increase in oil prices to P60 a liter, as he stressed his plan to make Negros the biofuels center of the Philippines.

“I want other provinces to see that Negros is leading the way in alternative fuels,” Zubiri, who was in the province for the annual Panaad sa Negros Festival in Bacolod City, said.

Under the road map for the Philippines Biofuels Program safeguards will be provided to protect the country’s food security programs, Zubiri also assured.

Zubiri announced that the acting head of the National Biofuels Board is Sugar Regulatory Administrator Rafael “Lito” Coscolluela, a former governor of Negros Occidental, although his official appointment by the President is being awaited.

Zubiri had earlier asked President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to replace NBB Executive Director Ramon Santos.

But Coscolluela yesterday said the biofuels program is being discussed with the President, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes and Santos. We are currently defining problems, no formal structure in the program management has been reached until the discussions on the matter are over, from there we will decide what is to be done, he said.

Zubiri said, “The United Nations is barking up the wrong tree by quickly attacking biofuels for escalating food prices. They should, instead, focus their attacks on the greed and selfish motives of oil-producing nations and speculators who continue to hoard petroleum products and raise their prices at the expense of the world”.

The latest record-breaking price of $120 per barrel of crude oil that is expected to roughly translate to P60-65 per liter of fuel, almost thrice the amount we were paying two years ago, is “the crime against humanity,” the senator said.

Such high prices have forced nations to produce biofuels to survive into the future by becoming energy-independent, he said.

That is why the Philippines, he said, is not giving up on the program, too.

Zubiri said he wants Negros to be the Brazilian model for production of EH 5, an 85 percent ethanol blend from sugar that could bring down the cost of fuel to P31 to 32 per liter.

He said it is easy to convert vehicles to use EH 5, gasoline tanks just have to be changed to plastic or fiber glass because steal tanks are corrosive.

The production of biofuels will save the sugar industry from collapse when tariffs on imported sugar are lifted under the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, he also said.

“We must protect the sugar industry and make it in tune with the times. Biofuels will give alternative value to cane,” he said.

The Philippines Biofuels Program is unique in the sense that we have the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of other countries who rushed to craft their own biofuels programs, he said.

Under the road map for the Philippines Biofuels Program, among the safeguards recommended is a ban on the planting of biofuel feedstocks in all irrigated and highly-productive arable lands, he said.

It is also recommended that production of bioethanol gasoline replacement be limited to sugar-producing districts and utilizing only excess production, he said. The country has an excess sugar production of almost 300,000 tons that will yield roughly 400 million liters of bioethanol, he said.

The program will also utilize the almost 4 million hectares of idle cogonal and denuded mountain lands to plant jatropha or even malunggay. These lands are not suitable for rice and corn due to the marginal slope of the land, he said.

A ban on the use of corn, wheat, soybean, rapeseed and other food crops for the biofuels program has also been recommended, he said.*CPG

www.visayandailystar.com

Three firms eye Bago hydro power
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Three firms have expressed interests in building dams in the Bago River to generate hydroelectricity, Jose Ma. Valencia, chief of staff of Gov. Isidro Zayco, said yesterday.

Valencia said two of the three firms, Alcantara and Sons and California Energy, have shown serious interest in the project and the provincial government led by Gov. Isidro Zayco and Rep. Jeffrey Ferrer (Neg. Occ., 4th District) are holding further meetings with them.

Initial studies show that the Bago River has the potential to produce 70 megawatts of hydroelectricity and building of dams for the purpose would cost about $400 million, Valencia said.

This would be at no costs to the provincial government, as the firms are proposing to produce hydroelectricity on a build operate scheme, he said.

It will also mean cheaper and clean renewable energy, Valencia said.

He said the firm that undertakes the hydroelectric plan will also be able to provide an irrigation system and potable spring water to Murcia, Bago, Bacolod, Talisay and Silay.

The firm that undertakes it will also conduct reforestation in the area to protect the water levels in the Bago River, Valencia said.

One firm will have to be chosen to undertake the project but we are also offering the tapping of the much larger Ilog-Hilabangan River for hydroelectricity, Valencia said.

The Ilog-Hilabangan river has the capacity to produce more energy than the Bago River, he said.

Should a dam be built there in would also help prevent flooding in the area, Valencia said.

Most hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of dammed water driving a water turbine and generator. In this case the energy extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the difference in height between the source and the water's outflow.*CPG

www.visayandailystar.com

big story ngayon ang word war ng gsis at lopezes over meralco. worth watching ang upcoming stockholders meeting nila. let's see if the gov't can wrest control of meralco from the lopezes.

Palace with GSIS all the way
By Marvin Sy
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Jose Rodel Clapano, Jess Diaz, Aurea Calica, Christina Mendez

Malacañang vowed yesterday to support the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) all the way in the pension fund’s clamor for full disclosure of the financial books of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye told Palace reporters yesterday that Malacañang would not be getting into management issues in Meralco, which are also being raised by GSIS, a major stockholder in the private power distribution firm.

“Our support is not so much in the change of management. The stockholders and consumers need transparency,” Bunye said in connection with efforts of GSIS president Winston Garcia to get financial documents from Meralco.

Garcia has assailed Meralco for its lack of transparency after the power firm refused to provide copies of its financial and operational records to the GSIS.

Garcia’s criticism of Meralco’s management has triggered speculation that the government is eyeing a shake-up of the board of directors and a takeover of the power firm that is controlled by the Lopez family.

The GSIS holds 23 percent of the shares of stock of Meralco. Another 10 percent is held by the Land Bank of the Philippines, Social Security System, Pag-Ibig Fund and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.

The government’s 33 percent share is almost equal to the 33.4 percent held by the Lopez group.

Bunye said the GSIS, just like any other stockholder of Meralco, has a right to look into the financial documents in order to ensure that its best interests are protected.

As an example, Bunye pointed out that the consumers have a right to know why Meralco continues to pass on to the consumers its systems losses.

President Arroyo had called on Meralco to stop charging systems loss as a separate item in its billing to customers.

“There are reports, subject of course to the examination of the books, that some items which should not be charged to the customers are being charged,” Bunye said.

Bunye said there are even reports indicating that Meralco may even be passing on to its customers the income taxes the firm paid to the government.

“Of course, subject to verification. That’s why it is important the books of Meralco be opened,” he said.

He said GSIS is not only representing itself as a shareholder of Meralco, but the public interest as well.

Bunye said Malacañang has no intention of being confrontational in handling the issue of Meralco’s high rates.

Mrs. Arroyo has ordered the Department of Trade and Industry to file four petitions before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) aimed at bringing down Meralco’s rates.

The ERC will start its hearings on the petitions today and Malacañang is urging everyone affected by the high rates of Meralco to participate in the process.

Diverting blame

The United Opposition (UNO) said yesterday that Malacañang’s efforts against Meralco are intended to divert the blame on the private power companies the government’s failure to implement reforms in the power sector.

In a statement, UNO president and Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay said the Arroyo government is good in manipulating public issues to conceal corruption scandals involving her administration and passing the buck for government mismanagement to the private

sector.

Binay said the apparent “power play squeeze” by the Arroyo government on the Lopez family and Meralco is another Palace ploy to blame the private sector for the administration’s inability to rein in the cost of electricity.

“Seven years after the enactment of Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA), the Arroyo administration has failed to privatize power utilities necessary to reform the energy sector and keep the cost of electricity within the reach of the poor,” Binay said.

He said instead of properly identifying the National Power Corp. (Napocor) as the culprit, Mrs. Arroyo deviously deflects the blame to Meralco and the Lopez family.

Party-list representatives led by Rep. Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna opposed yesterday the government’s plan to take over Meralco.

In a statement, Ocampo and his colleagues said they are opposing the plan “even as we call on Meralco to stop foisting increased power rates by passing on to consumers the costs of its inefficiencies.”

They said the planned takeover is against Mrs. Arroyo’s declared and consistently pursued policy to privatize the power sector.

“We believe the takeover plan is primarily a political move to deprive the Lopezes of their prime economic holding in retaliation for the latter’s perceived support, through its influential media outfit ABS-CBN, of popular opposition to the Arroyo government,” they said.

The other signatories of the statement are Teodoro Casiño, also of Bayan Muna; Crispin Beltran of Anakpawis, and Liza Maza and Luzviminda Ilagan of Gabriela.

A sixth House member, Teofisto Guingona III of Bukidnon, joined the militant lawmakers in opposing the planned government takeover of Meralco.

In a related development, presidential son and Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo said he supports the administration’s efforts to bring down the cost of electricity.

“The legislative and executive branches should join hands in ensuring that the country has enough power and fuel supply and in making such supply affordable to our people. That is my No. 1 concern as chairman of the House committee on energy,” he told The STAR.

He said both Malacañang and Congress should help each other in creating an environment that would make electricity within reach of the poor.

He refused to say whether he supports the planned government takeover of Meralco or the directive of his mother, President Arroyo, for the Department of Energy to petition the ERC to compel Meralco to reduce its rates.

Speaker Prospero Nograles asked Rep. Arroyo to expedite the passage of various measures “that would protect the public from the spiraling cost of fuel and electricity.”

“The recent petition of Meralco increase rates by 67.17 centavos per kilowatt-hour is aggravating the economic difficulties now being experienced by most Filipinos due to the high cost of food and other basic commodities,” he said.

Senators said both the government and Meralco appeared to be overbilling the consumers, the reason why cost of electricity has been high.

Sen. Francis Escudero said one of the primary reasons for the country’s expensive power cost was the expanded value added tax on systems loss.

Escudero said there is no provision in the VAT Law for this. “It is bad enough that we end up paying for electricity that is lost to illegal connections and to ‘heat.’ Coughing up an additional 12 percent tax to phantom power is too much,” Escudero said.

He said VAT was supposed to be a levy on goods and services, “on tangibles one receives and enjoys, not on imaginary things like electricity which has vaporized or vandalized.”

Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, chairman of the Senate committee on public services, said the base of local franchise tax included the “cost of electricity plus cost of transmission plus cost distribution.”

“That should not be. It should be only what is viewed as the cost of distribution and no more,” Enrile said.

Enrile also agreed with Sen. Joker Arroyo in saying it would not be enough for the government to reduce rates of Napocor to Meralco to lower electricity bills.

“We should study that because the EPIRA was intended to remove subsidies. If we have to tinker with that again, lower the cost of power from Napocor, somebody will have to pay for that, who is going to pay for that?” Enrile said.

Enrile said his proposed amendments to the EPIRA would hopefully bring down electricity rates for certain unlike what happened when the original law was passed.

He said he would remove the stranded costs and other extraneous charges being passed on to consumers to lower the burden on end-consumers.

Senator Arroyo said Meralco and not just Napocor must be asked to exert efforts to lower electricity rates.

One simple thing that Meralco can do to consumers is to make its bills “simpler” and not too complicated that one cannot easily understand what the actual charges are.

Arroyo and Sen. Manuel Roxas II also questioned why the ERC was not able to protect the consumers.

Senator Arroyo said the EPIRA would only be effective if its provisions were implemented properly by the ERC.

Roxas said the ERC must be able to explain why it had been allowing Meralco to impose its current rates.

“Meralco cannot charge anything that is not approved of by the ERC. It’s the ERC that should be our guard against excessive charges by power companies,” Roxas said. —

Meralco management change target — Garcia
http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20080506hed1.html
05/06/2008

Where earlier he categorically denied government’s plan to wrest control of Manila Electric Co., Winston Garcia, president of cash-rich state pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), openly spoke yesterday of “changing the present management” of dominant power distributor Meralco.

The Lopez family, which has a diverse ownership in media and utility businesses, currently controls the management in Meralco.

Garcia also indicated in a statement yesterday that President Arroyo supports his every move against Meralco.

“I am happy that the President supports my move because we should now really change the present management of Meralco as they hold themselves accountable to nobody despite the many anomalies that are happening at Meralco,” Garcia said in a press statement.

Garcia has indicated plans of filing criminal and civil cases against the Meralco management.

Garcia disclosed that GSIS was preparing the filing of charges of “large-scale” estafa against the Meralco management for overcharging its consumers billions of pesos in electricity costs.

He also said the GSIS might file a civil action against Meralco based on the Supreme

decision finding the electric company guilty of overcharging its customers of P30 billion.

A Meralco official had said that GSIS has been engaged in the last weeks in an active solicitation of proxies in the runup to the May 27 annual stockholders meeting of the power firm.

Proxies are voting rights from small shareholders who then delegate this to a major bloc in a company to form a strong vote.

Analysts said shares of GSIS and other government institutions combined in Meralco would total 34 percent holdings in the power firm which is already about equal the shares of the Lopezes in the firm.

Administration senators yesterday backed up the apparent Malacañang-led campaign to boot out the Lopezes from the Meralco management as an effort to lower electricity costs.

Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Miriam Defensor-Santiago indicated there would be no legal impediment if government persists in pursuing the takeover of Meralco, especially is the move is aimed at lowering power cost.

“It’s not the government who will control (the operations of Meralco), it’s the stockholders. Meralco is a private corporation. GSIS (Government Service Insurance System) is not really government, it’s owned by the people in government or who are employed in the government. They all own the assets that’s where they get their retirement pay,” Enrile said in an interview with reporters.

But for Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. the on-going efforts by the GSIS to seize control of the board of Manila Electric Company is part of what he described “squeeze play” to compel the Lopez family, which runs big media outlets aside from Meralco, to toe the line of the Arroyo administration.

The GSIS which holds 30 percent control of Meralco’s equity was reported to be eyeing of management change in view of continuing rise in power rates. On top of this, Garcia is said to be now studying the filing of fraud cases against the dominant power firm for alleged P30 billion overcharges made from 1994 to 2002.

Garcia added he welcomed the support given by President Arroyo to GSIS by ordering a review of Meralco power rates and an audit of its operations.

He cited the Supreme Court decision which found Meralco guilty of overcharging consumers and which directed the company to refund the amount to the consumers.

Garcia said that the management is not “transparent” and is hiding many things from its stockholders. He charged that the Meralco management has refused the GSIS demand for documents relating to the company’s operations although GSIS owns 25 percent of the Meralco’s shares of stock.

“We are a major stockholder. I represent 1.5 million members of GSIS who collectively are owners of 25 percent of Meralco. Yet, despite numerous demands, the Meralco refuses to give us the pertinent documents pertaining to its operations. We are entitled to these documents because we are a major stockholder with members in the board of directors. There is no transparency in the Meralco’s management. They must be hiding a lot,” said Garcia.

He referred to the “systems loss” which the management claims, and for which it charges its consumers. Garcia explained that the “systems loss” include losses from pilferages and other cases of inefficiency by the management. He also said the Meralco was charging more than 10 percent “systems loss” to consumers although they were entitled to claim not more than nine percent.

“Why should the consumers and stockholders, who are also consumers, be made to pay for their inefficiency? Somebody has to pay for this but not the innocent customers and stockholders.”

If the Meralco management refuses to give the GSIS the documents it requires, Garcia said he would ask the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Energy Regulatory Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission to get the papers so that they would know what is really happening at GSIS.

Garcia stressed that GSIS has a right to help bring electricity rates down on behalf of its 1.5 million members who are all consumers of electricity, aside from the fact that they are collectively major stockholders of the company.

President Arroyo is at it again. If she is not manipulating public issues to conceal corruption scandals implicating her family, she is passing the buck of government mismanagement to the private sector, the opposition decried yesterday.

United Opposition (UNO) President and Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay said the apparent “power play squeeze” being applied against the Lopez family and Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) was another ploy by Malacañang to blame the private sector for her administration’s obvious failure to implement the necessary reforms in the power sector and keep the cost of electricity down.

“Instead of properly identifying the National Power Corporation (Napocor) as the obvious culprit, President Arroyo deviously deflects blame to Meralco and the Lopez family,” Binay added. “She is being in character.”

According to Santiago, Senate energy committee chair and concurrent co-chair of the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC), Congress, while it could not dictate on how the ERC should act on the matter, it is bound by law to support the move of the Executive if state control of Meralco will result in lower electric costs.

Under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira), it clearly states as its mandate the lowering of electricity prices in the Philippines, which is one of the highest in Asia, she pointed out.

“As chair of the Powercom, I can summon the chairman of the ERC only after he has acted on the matter. We in Congress cannot dictate how the ERC, which is an executive agency, should act on the matter,” she said.”Because the state has expressed official concern over the electric power industry by passing the EPIRA law, we shall allow matters with respect to electricity rates to be decided by the private sector based on good corporate management practices. But if the result for the consumer is significantly higher rates, then we just have to step in,” she added.

Another administration ally in the Senate, Sen. Joker Arroyo, is against the idea of Napocor effectively assuming the burden just so Meralco would be forced to bring down its rates.

“If there is a cost problem, Meralco must contribute to the solution. That’s why I’m faulting the President,” Senator Arroyo said in reference to what he described by “prescription” made by the President to help resolve the soaring power rates in the country.

“What kind of prescription is that? If the problem is with Meralco, then Meralco must solve this. What is the contribution of Meralco to the problem? Zero, none. Meralco must also give a solution and he has not offered any. Remember that this is a regulated industry, it’s a monopoly and whenever it’s a monopoly, that’s subject to regulation by the government,” he said.

“They must offer the solution, they’re quiet. They will agree because they’re not being asked by the President to reduce their rates. What kind of a deal is that?

“In other words, Meralco is the erring company but it is not being asked to do anything. It’s Napocor that is being asked to do so because Napocor is owned by the people. So who will suffer? Napocor,” he added.

Senator Arroyo questions why the so-called independent power producers (IPPs) are not being asked to contribute to providing solution to the problem.

“What the President is saying is that Napocor should shoulder the whole thing. Napocor is owned by the people. How about the IPPs? These are owned mostly by foreigners and they’re not being asked to contribute anything. How about the other companies, they’re not being asked to do anything.

“Another thing, the ERC is very slow in acting on the petitions. It takes years or months before they act. The success or failure of the EPIRA will depend upon the effectivity and honesty of ERC. They have to exhibit something positive,” he said.

Malacañang has also asked Meralco to open its books to the public as part of the transparency being sought by the other stockholders of the company headed by the GSIS.

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said the executive is supporting the stand of the GSIS for Meralco to make public its financial records to determine if past power rate hikes charged to the consumers were all above board.

Bunye , however, hinted at lack of interest in the other demand of GSIS President Winston Garcia to change the chairmanship of Meralco stressing that they want transparency to be prioritized first by the power firm as part of public interest.

“Our support is not so much about change in management , but our support is on the issue of transparency so we would all know if what Meralco charged is fair ..it is important to open the books of Meralco. In the corporation law, stockholders has the right to verify the books. Even ordinary citizens knows the need for transparency , because we are all affected on the issue of power rate hikes,” Bunye said.

When pressed again if the executive will support the change of management in Meralco once the transparency issue has been settled, Bunye meaningfully said, “ We ‘ll cross the bridge when we get there.”

The Palace spokesman also denied that “political vendetta” is the motive of the executive in running against Meralco owned by the Lopezes , known critics of the President .

Binay said Meralco merely passes on to the consumer the charges imposed by state-owned Napocor which still controls 70 percent of all power generation in the country.

The Makati mayor said the timing of the President’s tirade against Meralco was “suspect” and “could very well be part of a pattern of harassment against Malacanang’s perceived enemies” given the critical stance taken by Lopez-owned ABS-CBN against government on the issue of media restriction.

“I agree that we must lower the cost of electricity but I deplore the cavalier manner by Malacañang is undertaking to achieve this end. It is passing the blame to the private sector when it should be review its own failed policies on power and energy,” Binay added.

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez has jumped on the bandwagon calling on the management of the Meralco to come clean and account for the electric meter deposit fee fund.

Gonzalez says the deposit for the electric meter, which amounts between P4, 000 to P6,000, should be returned by Meralco to the customer once the client transfers or moves out of his place of residence or business.

The STUPIDITY of the opposition particularly the Monkey Man Binay is at its finest again.

What is the real issue? GSIS, a shareholder of Meralco, wants to open Meralcos books for transparency. Transparency is what everybody clamor for.

The case? Meralco has been charging the customers with pilferage fee,
by collecting a 58 centavos per kilowatt hour as “systems loss charge” to cover claimed pilferage and heat losses.
Why in the first place, has Meralco let squatters steal electricity - it's a problem that they should deal with. It appears that they encourage pilferage by turning a blind eye on solving it, for as long as they can extort more charges from the diligently paying customers.

It is similar to the fraud they had committed (or still committing) - passing over their income tax payment due to government to the customers by adding fraudulent charges to electric bills.

The fact is, Meralco has committed a fraud by overcharging the customers with unwarranted charges such as pilferage, systems lost, and heat lost that are technically their own incompetent technical fault.

Palace with GSIS all the way
By Marvin Sy
Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Diverting blame

In a statement, UNO president and Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay said the Arroyo government is good in manipulating public issues to conceal corruption scandals involving her administration and passing the buck for government mismanagement to the private sector.

Binay said the apparent “power play squeeze” by the Arroyo government on the Lopez family and Meralco is another Palace ploy to blame the private sector for the administration’s inability to rein in the cost of electricity.

“Seven years after the enactment of Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA), the Arroyo administration has failed to privatize power utilities necessary to reform the energy sector and keep the cost of electricity within the reach of the poor,” Binay said.

He said instead of properly identifying the National Power Corp. (Napocor) as the culprit, Mrs. Arroyo deviously deflects the blame to Meralco and the Lopez family.

Party-list representatives led by Rep. Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna opposed yesterday the government’s plan to take over Meralco.

In a statement, Ocampo and his colleagues said they are opposing the plan “even as we call on Meralco to stop foisting increased power rates by passing on to consumers the costs of its inefficiencies.”

They said the planned takeover is against Mrs. Arroyo’s declared and consistently pursued policy to privatize the power sector.

“We believe the takeover plan is primarily a political move to deprive the Lopezes of their prime economic holding in retaliation for the latter’s perceived support, through its influential media outfit ABS-CBN, of popular opposition to the Arroyo government,” they said.

The other signatories of the statement are Teodoro Casiño, also of Bayan Muna; Crispin Beltran of Anakpawis, and Liza Maza and Luzviminda Ilagan of Gabriela.

A sixth House member, Teofisto Guingona III of Bukidnon, joined the militant lawmakers in opposing the planned government takeover of Meralco.

In a related development, presidential son and Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo said he supports the administration’s efforts to bring down the cost of electricity.

“The legislative and executive branches should join hands in ensuring that the country has enough power and fuel supply and in making such supply affordable to our people. That is my No. 1 concern as chairman of the House committee on energy,” he told The STAR.

He said both Malacañang and Congress should help each other in creating an environment that would make electricity within reach of the poor.

He refused to say whether he supports the planned government takeover of Meralco or the directive of his mother, President Arroyo, for the Department of Energy to petition the ERC to compel Meralco to reduce its rates.

Speaker Prospero Nograles asked Rep. Arroyo to expedite the passage of various measures “that would protect the public from the spiraling cost of fuel and electricity.”

“The recent petition of Meralco increase rates by 67.17 centavos per kilowatt-hour is aggravating the economic difficulties now being experienced by most Filipinos due to the high cost of food and other basic commodities,” he said.

Senators said both the government and Meralco appeared to be overbilling the consumers, the reason why cost of electricity has been high.

Sen. Francis Escudero said one of the primary reasons for the country’s expensive power cost was the expanded value added tax on systems loss.

Escudero said there is no provision in the VAT Law for this. “It is bad enough that we end up paying for electricity that is lost to illegal connections and to ‘heat.’ Coughing up an additional 12 percent tax to phantom power is too much,” Escudero said.

He said VAT was supposed to be a levy on goods and services, “on tangibles one receives and enjoys, not on imaginary things like electricity which has vaporized or vandalized.”

Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, chairman of the Senate committee on public services, said the base of local franchise tax included the “cost of electricity plus cost of transmission plus cost distribution.”

“That should not be. It should be only what is viewed as the cost of distribution and no more,” Enrile said.

Enrile also agreed with Sen. Joker Arroyo in saying it would not be enough for the government to reduce rates of Napocor to Meralco to lower electricity bills.

“We should study that because the EPIRA was intended to remove subsidies. If we have to tinker with that again, lower the cost of power from Napocor, somebody will have to pay for that, who is going to pay for that?” Enrile said.

Enrile said his proposed amendments to the EPIRA would hopefully bring down electricity rates for certain unlike what happened when the original law was passed.

He said he would remove the stranded costs and other extraneous charges being passed on to consumers to lower the burden on end-consumers.

Senator Arroyo said Meralco and not just Napocor must be asked to exert efforts to lower electricity rates.

One simple thing that Meralco can do to consumers is to make its bills “simpler” and not too complicated that one cannot easily understand what the actual charges are.

Arroyo and Sen. Manuel Roxas II also questioned why the ERC was not able to protect the consumers.

Senator Arroyo said the EPIRA would only be effective if its provisions were implemented properly by the ERC.

Roxas said the ERC must be able to explain why it had been allowing Meralco to impose its current rates.

“Meralco cannot charge anything that is not approved of by the ERC. It’s the ERC that should be our guard against excessive charges by power companies,” Roxas said. —

^^ http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b198/kyle_Lark/zordon-mmpr.jpg

5 firms bidding for Amlan hydro

Five bidders for the 0.8-megawatt Amlan Hydroelectric Power Plant in Oriental Negros will proceed to the pre-bid stage tomorrow after complying with the initial requirements set by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.

Prospective bidders can clarify issues and concerns on the bidding procedures during the pre-bid conference. The bidding is set on June 25.

The next stages of the bidding exercise will include conducting due diligence on the power facility.

The initial requirements included the submission of a Confidentiality Agreement and Undertaking and the payment of the $500 participation fee.

PSALM announced last month the sale of the small hydro-electric plant located in Brgy. Pasalan, which has two 400-kilowatt turbine generators and operates as a base-load plant supplying power to Amlan and its neighboring areas.

Another power facility offered for sale in Oriental Negros is the 192.5-MW Palinpinon Geothermal plant in Valencia. Palinpinon, which will be sold in July, has two power stations, the Palinpinon I and II.

Being commissioned by the PNOC-Energy Development Corp., it was previously offered as one package with the Panay Diesel Power Plant, consisting of the 36.5-megawatt Panay 1 and and 110-megawatt Panay 3 plants which are facilities of the National Power Corp.

PSALM had earlier announced that Panay Diesel will now be bidded out with 22-MW Bohol power plant in August, while Palinpinon will be sold independently.

The sale of these power plants is part of the government’s efforts to privatize at least 70 percent of its total generating assets.*NLG

WHY MERALCO’S RATE SHOULD BE LOWERED

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may6_2008
In the wake of President Arroyo’s plan to revamp her Cabinet this month of May, it would do well to separate the chaff from the grain as it were, and mention here the achievers and performers.
I
n my book, the following is the list of achievers and performers in the Cabinet, not necessarily in this order:
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita as “Little President,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Bert Romulo, Finance Secretary Gary Teves, Energy Secretary Angie Reyes, Trade Secretary Peter Favila, National Economic and Development Authority Director General Augusto Santos, Budget Secretary Rolly Andaya, Education Secretary Jesli Lapus, Environment Secretary Lito Atienza, Health Secretary Fransico Duque, Interior Secretary Ronnie Puno, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, Presidential Management Staff Chief Cerge Remonde, chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol and Press Secretary Toting Bunye.

I want to make special mention of the President’s economic team, headed by Teves, with Favila, Santos and Andaya as members, in the successful implementation of the country’s fiscal and economic reforms without which the country would be in a worse position than it is now with the global price and food crisis, as well as the effects of an impending recession in the United States.
***
The call of President Arroyo for the Lopezes of Manila Electric Co. to lower power rates is long overdue.
With electricity rates hitting the ceiling, there is a clamor for the President to do something; after all, the government has a one-third stake in Meralco. In fact, power rates of Meralco are now the source of a lot of discontent not only among foreign investors, but local business sectors as well.
The President’s call is a popular move. People have been complaining of Meralco’s high distribution charges as reflected on their bills.

The President’s call is nothing new however. Senator Juan Ponce Enrile has been agitating for an inquiry into Meralco’s books, which by the way is being kept secret from the Government Service Insurance Syatem, which also owns 30 percent of the power distribution firm. This has made GSIS president Winston Garcia call for a change in the management of Meralco. The Lopezes have been in control for several decades now.

It’s not Garcia who’s calling for more transparency, but over a million members of GSIS, who are largely affected by high electricity and power rates.

One of the complaints against Meralco is that it also buys its power from independent power producers, which the Lopezes also control—the Quezon Power, First Gas-Sta. Rita and First Gas-San Lorenzo—at rates much higher than the National Power Corp. gives. Especially so now that the President has directed Napocor to lower its rates. This is clearly a conflict of interest.

Another complaint is why “system loss charge,” representing 8 percent of Meralco’s distribution charge, should be borne by the public. Rightly so—since pilferages and loss of electricity are the responsibility of Meralco, not of consumers. In other words, we, Meralco consumers, are paying for electricity we are not using. In effect, we, the public, are being fried in our own fat.
The Lopezes have thus far ignored these questions. Indeed they have not been addressed at all.
The call of GSIS for Meralco to open its books for more transparency is imperative. Meralco management should dispel talks that some hanky-panky is going on.

***
So, is the management hiding something? After all, it is also in control of supplies like wires, electric posts, generators and so on.
Given that Meralco is one-third owned by government, shouldn’t Meralco’s management be more transparent? It’s also the ownership of more than a million government people who are members of the GSIS. So if there is need for it, change the Lopezes!
There are, however, implication of GMA’s call for lower Meralco rates and the Palace-backed GSIS call for more management transparency. The President has actually declared “war” on the Lopezes, who have long controlled Meralco.
Other presidents before GMA have tried but failed. Note that the Lopezes are now in almost everything—in power and energy, in real estate development, in infrastructure, and above all, they have ABS-CBN, the most powerful radio and television network.
In fact, there are reports that the Lopezes may field their own presidential candidate in 2010. But, Santa Banana, the bottom line to all this are the people and even national interest. My gulay, coming right down to it, it’s public and national interest against the Lopezes!
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may6_2008

Meralco SHould Lower Their Rates !!!!!!!!!!

Legal basis laid for govt to open Meralco books
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=news1_may6_2008

THE Energy Regulatory Commission should compel Manila Electric Co. to open its books and account for the deposits consumers make to have their meters installed, an official said yesterday.

“That is your money, which is actually [held] in trust with Meralco. How much of the funds were refunded to consumers? How much is it now?” Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said.

“The ERC as a regulatory body can compel Meralco to account for these funds.”

Gonzalez’s remarks followed a Malacañang statement saying Meralco had an obligation to open its books to stockholders, and amid reports the Lopez-controlled company had been passing off its income tax charges to consumers since 1994 despite a Supreme Court ruling barring it.

The power distribution company yesterday reported a net income of P655 million for the first quarter, a 23.2-percent increase from the same period last year despite a 9.5-percent decline in revenues, to P43.64 billion.

In its report to the stock exchange, Meralco said energy sales rose a slight 1.9 percent, but this was offset by system-loss charges.

But Gonzalez said Meralco could be held liable for swindling consumers if it failed to return the deposits for its meters.

“That is in effect a deposit, which is a trust fund. It is a violation of the Revised Penal Code if Meralco fails to return it to consumers,” he said.

The energy commission should see to it that Meralco accounted for this money, he added.

Gonzalez denied allegations that the government was taking a hard stance on Meralco to bring political pressure to bear on the Lopezes.

Earlier, the Government Service Insurance System, which owns 33 percent of Meralco, asked its management to open its books to stockholders so they could determine why electricity rates remained high.

“One of the reasons why Meralco has high rates because it has many IPPs [independent power producers], and these IPPs are also owned by Meralco,” Gonzalez said.

From the Palace, chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol said the government would go after Meralco for the P80 billion it owed National Power Corp.

“The government is serious about running after this,” Apostol said.

“There will be no compromises. We have estimated the deficiency at P80 billion while Meralco has claimed it owes Napocor P27 billion.”

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the only way the power distributor could clear its name was to open its books to its stockholders, especially the GSIS.

“There are reports that Meralco has been passing on its income tax charges to ordinary consumers. We need transparency because the people want to know why Meralco is charging its system losses to consumers. Under the Corporation Code, stockholders have the right to examine [the books], and the only limitation is that the examination be done during office hours.”

A Meralco official denied that the company is hiding information regarding power rates.

“Transparency is a non-issue... we are precisely complying with their requirements of examination,” lawyer Christian Monsod, who sits in the Meralco board of directors, said in an interview on the Lopez-owned radio station dzMM.

Meralco vice president Elpi Cuna said the power distributor owed Napocor billions, but added there was no talk of interest—about P50 billion—on the debt in a 2003 settlement that both companies signed.

The government has been after Meralco to bring down power rates.

Earlier this week, President Arroyo urged business groups to join forces in a legal battle to bring down the cost of electricity by supporting an omnibus petition that the Trade Department filed before the Energy Regulatory Commission.

The petition seeks to bar Meralco from passing its system losses to consumers, and to force the company to lower its 16-percent return on rate base to 12 percent.

System loss charges account for about 8 percent of a consumer’s power bill.

Leftwing awmakers opposed any plan for a government takeover of Meralco, saying this would be a political move against the Lopez family.

Party-list Reps. Teodoro Casiño and and Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna, Crispin Beltran of Anakpawis, and Liza Maza and Luzviminda Ilagan of Gabriela said they favored state control of the industry but rejected a “highly dubious” takeover by the Arroyo administration.

“Taking over Meralco will only worsen the already highly problematic power sector,” they said in a joint statement. Rey E. Requejo, Joyce Pangco Pañares, Alena Mae Flores, Romie A. Evangelista

^^ hmm.. lopez vs. RP.. seems like history repeats itself.. i saw bandila today, seems like they are hyping and compounding the issue to death..

meralco really charges us, again, to death.. i must really agree with pgma on this one..

ginagamit ng mga lopezes ang media particulary abs cbn to their own selfish agenda. why should the consumers pay for the systems loss charge, eh hindi naman natin ginamit yung kuryente na yun diba. GSIS has all the right to question meralco's books as they have a substantial stake at meralco.

The other side of the coin
HIDDEN AGENDA By Mary Ann Ll. Reyes
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008050618

In our column last Sunday, we wrote about how GSIS head Winston Garcia declared war against the Manila Electric Co. in his pursuit of a possible change in management and good corporate governance.

Many agree with Garcia’s published motives. But others say his moves are only meant to distract the public’s attention from moves to revise the EPIRA law.

But is there really a need to change EPIRA?

Observers note that for the first time since EPIRA was passed in 2001, all’s well for the privatization of Napocor. Even the long-delayed privatization of the Napocor IPP contracts which may generate about $13 billion is pushing through according to PSALM.

Unfortunately, it is claimed that the impending privatization of Napocor’s IPP contracts will cut off the Napocor mafia’s power to procure fuel for the Napocor IPP plants, particularly the coal plants. Remember that more than P20 billion worth of overpriced coal is purchased by NPC every year for these IPPs.

Already a case had been filed with the Ombudsman against Napocor president Cyril del Callar and his cohorts for anomalous coal procurements that are more than P600 million overpriced, not to mention the furor over the recent award of coal supply contract by the same cohorts of Del Callar to a dubious entity with capitalization of less than P65,000.

So the Napocor mafia now turns its guns on its favorite scapegoat/punching bag — Meralco. It is said that the mafia is working with some cohorts in the Palace in feeding the President grossly inaccurate information.

Case in point. Observers note that when the President asked recently why power costs in the Luzon urban beltway is so high when Luzon is reliant on imported oil for only one percent of its power and accuses Meralco of charging higher rates than its counterparts in Cebu, Davao and the electric coops, evidently nobody explained to her that aside from oil, the Luzon grid uses coal.

In the Luzon grid, coal fired power plants accounts for close to 35 percent of the total kilowatt-hours and majority of the coal for these plants is procured by Napocor. Still, management refuses to sign up any long-term coal contracts when markets were calmer.

The other big contributor to the price of electricity in the Luzon grid is natural gas. But why is natural gas from Camago-Malampaya taxed at least 10 times more than that levied on imported coal? We are the only country in Asia that penalizes its citizens in this manner when they consume their own indigenous natural gas.

The President also said she will lower Napocor’s rates by half. The last time she did that in 2002, Napocor registered its largest loss in its history (P110-billion net loss in 2003). This will happen again if Napocor’s selling prices fail to reflect the true cost of fuel and power purchased from its IPPs.

DAPAT I FIRING SQUAD NA TONG MGA TAGA NAPACOR, INUULIT NA NAMAN KAHAYUPAN NILA...

Focus being diverted from Napocor sleaze
GOTCHA By Jarius Bondoc
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Opinion&p=49&type=2&sec=25&aid=2008050693

The mafia at the state-owned Napocor has done it again. It succeeded diverting attention from its billion-peso thievery as the real cause of soaring electricity rates. Congress was made busy reviewing the power sector law. Malacañang was sicced on private retailer Meralco. Meanwhile the Mafiosi are laughing their way to the bank.

They had pulled a fast one in April 2007. Claiming acute shortage of coal in four Napocor plants across Luzon, they contrived emergency imports to avert blackouts. On cue power tripped island-wide supposedly because the coal generators couldn’t run full capacity, straining two oil-fired ones. “Bidding” was held on too short a notice so no supplier could meet the deadline to submit quotations. This paved the way for a “failure of bid” and the opportunity for negotiated purchase. A deal was signed with Hunter Valley Coal Corp. of Australia, thru Glencore Far East Philippines AG, for an initial shipload of 65,000 metric tons. The contract price was $84 per ton (at P50:$1 exchange rate). Yet, the going rate in Australia then was only $30. It was overpriced by $54 per ton, or $3.51 million (P175.5 million) for the first shipment in April 2007. Napocor ordered four more similar shipments in July and August. Total overprice thus hit $17.55 million (P877.5 million).

Irate consumerists sued Napocor president Cyril del Callar before the Ombudsman for graft. Not only was machination obvious, the state firm’s managers also disobeyed the energy department’s long-standing order to stockpile on cheap coal. Also charged were Napocor VP-Logistics Eduardo Eroy, VP-Bidding Juan Carlos Guadarrama, and Mancom secretariat head Urbano Mendiola Jr.

The Joint Congressional Power Commission promised to investigate. Somewhere along the way it got distracted, though. Napocor management talked legislators into scrutinizing instead the rising cost of electricity for burdened homes and industries. Blame was put on lack of “open access” for factories and subdivisions to buy electricity from retailers of their choice. To date Napocor has privatized only a third of its plants, instead of all as obliged by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act. The act programs open access to commence when Napocor sells off 70 percent. But Napocor now wants Congress to amend it to begin open access even at only 50 percent. Napocor Mafiosi scored double. Forestalled was the probe that could have exposed how much they’ve filched so far and who the patron is. Impending approval of a 50-percent threshold for open access also means they won’t have to speed up the sale of coal plants from which they make a killing.

Malacañang too was fooled to ignore the coal kickbacks. No less than Gloria Arroyo led the deceived. Pointing to Meralco as culprit, she asked businessmen to help her force Luzon’s biggest power distributor to match the lower charges in Visayas-Mindanao. Forgotten was that mostly cheap waterfalls run Visayas-Mindanao turbines. By contrast, coal makes up a third of Luzon’s electricity costs, so overpricing drives up Napocor’s pass-on rate to Meralco and other retailers. Overlooked too was that state-run mutual funds and a bank — GSIS, SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG, Land Bank — own 33 percent of Meralco. A President-led attack on Meralco would hurt the agencies. (GSIS boss Winston Garcia, leading that bloc in the Meralco board, is sharper in urging open books from the controlling Lopez clan.)

While nobody was looking, the Napocor mafia struck again early this year. Under the old modus operandi, it declared need for rush purchase of coal — a shipload of 65,000 metric tons for Pagbilao plant. One of the firms Guadarrama invited on February 12 to bid was PT Marsitero Marloan of Indonesia, represented in Manila by TransPacific Consolidated Resources Inc. Notably, TCRI was incorporated only in October 2007 with paltry P1-million authorized capital — P250,000 subscribed, P62,500 paid up. Listed address was Danarra Business Center, which the Quezon City hotel staff says has been closed since December.

Three days later PT Marsitero Marloan-TCRI won the “bidding” and was awarded the contract on February 19. Price: $109.50 per ton. Though bogus, TCRI was in for more good luck. On March 5 del Callar awarded it triple the original volume. The contract rose to $23,487,750 (P956,374,204.50) for three shiploads in March, April and June. Indonesian coal was selling then at $77 per ton. There was clear overpricing of $32.50 per ton, or a total of $6,337,500 (P258,050,325). Consumers are now paying for that sleaze, among many others.

ginagamit ng mga lopezes ang media particulary abs cbn to their own selfish agenda. why should the consumers pay for the systems loss charge, eh hindi naman natin ginamit yung kuryente na yun diba. GSIS has all the right to question meralco's books as they have a substantial stake at meralco.

ang system loss ay yong mga kuryento na ninanakaw sa pamamagitan ng mga jumpers at mga illegal connections...kaya pag neighbor mo may jumper, kayo po ang nagbabayad ng kuryente na ninanakaw nila.

ang system loss ay yong mga kuryento na ninanakaw sa pamamagitan ng mga jumpers at mga illegal connections...kaya pag neighbor mo may jumper, kayo po ang nagbabayad ng kuryente na ninanakaw nila.

bakit kaya tayo ang nagbabayad, hindi ba dapat hulihin na lang sila imbis na ipasa sa mga ligal na consumer ang kabalbalan ng mga hayop na jumper na mga iyan?!

bakit ako ang magbabayad nang nakaw na kuryente, hindi talaga tama yun. meralco problem yan.

Privatize NAPOCOR para matigil na ang mga kahayupan nila... pero baka lalong tumaas ang presyo ng kuryente.

bakit ako ang magbabayad nang nakaw na kuryente, hindi talaga tama yun. meralco problem yan.

Paying "stolen electricity" is similar to paying taxes to replenish the "stolen money" of LGU's... and Mr. Public Servant was so busy he did not even have the time to thank us!... so, as for Meralco: Thanks, but no thanks! :lol:

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o38/GREAT_GENERAL_BOBBY/meralco1.jpg

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o38/GREAT_GENERAL_BOBBY/meralco4.jpg


http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o38/GREAT_GENERAL_BOBBY/meralco3.jpg


http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o38/GREAT_GENERAL_BOBBY/meralco2.jpg



Yay!!! :banana:

Loser talaga ang NAPOCOR :ohno:

Gov’t pressure peeves Lopez patriarch
...says he is willing to sell family’s Meralco stake
— reports from Reuters, Alexis Douglas B. Romero
http://bworld.com.ph/BW050908/content.php?id=002

GOVERNMENT PRESSURE to lower power rates yesterday prompted the Lopez patriarch to declare that he wanted to sell the family stake in the country’s biggest power utility.

"I’m sick and tired of this business," said Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC) which owns more than 33% of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).

"We can’t even get a rate increase because the government is saying our rates are too high," he told reporters, adding he was willing to sell the family’s holdings in the power distributor to state pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) or to a foreign firm.

"This is my own opinion," Mr. Lopez added.

Winston Garcia, president of the GSIS which holds a fourth of Meralco, has called for a management revamp in the firm to compel it to lower rates.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has called on Meralco to lower power rates to appease foreign business groups which have complained of high power costs and to ease the burden on the country’s poor who are saddled with rising food and oil prices.

Shares of Meralco lost 3.6% yesterday, underperfoming the main stock index which gained 0.8%. The stock has lost 16.7% so far this week after the government stepped up its campaign to press for lower power rates.

FPHC President and Chief Operating Officer Elpidio L. Ibañez told BusinessWorld the company would be willing to consider selling if an opportunity arose, but stressed that the utility would be best-run by the private sector.

"We’re all businessmen. As an investor, we’re always looking to buy or sell depending on market conditions. But I don’t see the government seriously trying to take over and manage Meralco. It’s not their role," he said.

The GSIS’ Mr. Garcia said the government is willing to discuss the issue with the Lopezes.

"If they want to sell, we’re willing to sit with them," he said.

Mr. Lopez stressed the government’s value added tax (VAT) on power and natural gas royalties were pushing power rates up.

"High rates are not Meralco’s responsibility. Our rates are as low as we can get them. It’s the government that has to cut the VAT and take out royalties on natural gas if they want to reduce rates. It’s the government’s responsibility to bring rates down and not look to Meralco," he said.

Astro del Castillo, managing director of First Grade Holdings, said too much government regulation in certain industries does not bode well for the country’s bid to attract investors, adding the government should be more sensitive to investments of businessmen.

"Most of us are against any government takeover of such utility companies. It’s an open secret that the government is poor in handling such entities," he said.

"I sympathize with the man (Mr. Lopez) ... But I think we should do away with such emotional remarks so as not to discourage other investors, particularly those wanting to participate in the privatization [of state power assets]," Mr. del Castillo said.

Last year, the Lopez family entered into deals to buy additional stakes in Meralco from partner Union Fenosa of Spain and from the Meralco pension fund, raising its stake to 33.4% from 18%.

The last time Meralco raised its basic distribution charge was in June 2003. A new petition by the company to raise its basic rates is still pending with the government regulatory body.

The Lopezes bought into Meralco in 1962 but the family’s stake was confiscated by the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos when he declared martial law in 1972. The family returned to the company in 1986 after Marcos’ ouster following a popular revolt.

Asked to comment, Press Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye said the Lopezes should not make it appear that the government was going after the family, stressing that ordinary consumers were concerned about how they were being charged.

"Those who are complaining of high charges are the consumers. You would notice how high electricity rates have gone up. This is common knowledge and there is a general clamor from the public," he told a press conference in Malacañang.

Regarding Mr. Lopez’s comment on taxes, Mr. Bunye said: "Parang binabaliktad nila ang sitwasyon (It appears that they want to reverse the situation). The public only wants to know the basis of their computation.

"Some believe that they are overcharging but it would be better if this issue is brought to the official process. Now that the ERC (Energy Regulatory Commission) is hearing the petitions [to lower power rates], we expect the public to participate."

Lopez to government: You can have Meralco
By Elisa Osorio
Friday, May 9, 2008
– With Christina Mendez, Jess Diaz, Paolo Romero, Evelyn Macairan, Donnabelle Gatdula, Antonieta Lopez
http://philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24

Fed up with pressures from the government to lower electricity rates, the patriarch of the Lopez family that controls the Manila Electric Co. said he now wants out of the power firm because he’s “sick and tired of the business.”

Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Philippine Holdings Corp. (First Holdings), said he will not oppose a government buyout of his family’s holdings in Meralco to pave the way for the lowering of rates.

“We cannot even get a rate increase because government keeps saying our rates are too high,” Lopez told reporters on the sidelines of the Philippines-Europe conference at the Renaissance Hotel in Makati City yesterday.

Meralco is under government pressure to pare down electricity rates and a joint congressional commission has set a hearing on Monday to make the country’s largest power distributor explain its alleged overcharging.

The specter of a government takeover loomed after Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president and general manager Winston Garcia demanded to see Meralco’s financial records.

Garcia denied that he was gearing for a takeover and said he merely wanted a “change in management” in Meralco. He said the GSIS, being a major stockholder, has the right to make such demands. Of the government’s 33 percent overall stake in Meralco, GSIS controls 23 percent.

Last year, the Lopez family entered into deals to buy additional stakes in Meralco from partner Union Fenosa of Spain and from the Meralco pension fund, raising its stake from 18 percent to 33.4 percent.

“If he (Garcia) wants, he can buy us out,” Lopez pointed out.

Lopez ruled out buying the GSIS share in Meralco. “We don’t have the money,” he said.

On Garcia’s call for a management change in Meralco, Lopez said it is contrary to the government’s privatization thrust.

President Arroyo has called on Meralco to lower power rates to appease foreign business groups which have complained of high power costs and to ease the burden on the poor who are saddled with rising food and oil prices.

The last time Meralco raised its basic distribution charge was in June 2003. A new petition to hike rates is pending with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Willing to negotiate

Informed of Lopez’s pronouncement, Garcia said GSIS is willing to negotiate with Meralco.

“I hope they will come to us formally. We want to talk to them. Not necessarily to purchase but if they want to sell we would like to sit with them,” Garcia said in a telephone interview.

Meanwhile, Lopez said Meralco welcomes any move of the government, particularly Congress, to investigate the alleged high power costs, but insisted the power distributor should not be singled out.

“They can do everything they want. All I’m saying is that the high rates are not Meralco’s responsibility,” Lopez said.

“Our rates are as low as we can get them. It’s the government that has to take out the VAT (value added tax) and the royalties on natural gas,” he explained.

At Malacañang, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye accused the Lopezes of trying to twist facts on the issue of the alleged Meralco overpricing.

“This is common knowledge and there is a general clamor from the public that there should be an explanation from Meralco why they charge so high,” he said.

“It’s like they’re trying to twist the situation but what the public is just asking for is the basis of (Meralco’s) computation,” Bunye said.

“If the call of the GSIS for Meralco to open its books has been heeded, we would not have reached this point,” Bunye said.

He said a full-scale public hearing would ensure transparency in the utility firm’s accounting and operations. “There are many details that are not available to the public,” he said.

Joint congress probe readied

Sen. Miriam Santiago, who heads the Joint Congressional Power Commission (Powercom), said the investigation will unmask and pave the way for the prosecution of “criminal syndicates” responsible for the high Meralco rates.

“That is a conglomeration of mafias. I am sure, although I may not have the evidence, that there is a crime involved. That is a crime of a combination of a restraint in trade or monopoly. That is punishable under the Penal Code,” Santiago said.

“I expect it to be a battle of titans,” Santiago said of Monday’s hearing. “I will ask Mr. Winston Garcia of the GSIS to enumerate as briefly as possible the ways in which he thinks Meralco has been mismanaged such as to result in very high electricity rates,” Santiago said.

She said the situation at Meralco that may have led to the ballooning of rates might be worse than that at the Bureau of Customs, although she stressed the owners, including the Lopezes, might not be involved.

“Yun ang basehan kung bakit sinabi ng ibang senador na Meralco lang ang makakapagpatakbo sa Meralco. Ang ibig sabihin lang niyan ay napakaraming pasikot-sikot diyan (That’s the basis for some senators’ claim that only Meralco can run Meralco. It means there are many goings-on there),” she said.

Sen. Rodolfo Biazon, for his part, cautioned the government against working clandestinely for a management change in Meralco.

“The government seems to be deploying all powers and resources to effect government control over this utility company,” Biazon said.

“This move is seemingly being put into motion by mustering the necessary votes through the use of government stocks and proxies from the independent stock holders,” he said.

“We will witness a parade of incompetent political appointees who will be coming one after another, depending on the direction of the political winds,” Biazon pointed out.

“If this happens, then there is danger that this utility company could go under. If this occurs, it may not only be the interest of the general public being served by Meralco that will be jeopardized, but may include the losses to be suffered by government corporations owning stocks in Meralco such as the GSIS that would also be put in danger,” he added.

Meanwhile, Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iniguez warned the public and politicians against knee-jerk reactions to reports of government’s Meralco takeover plan.

“Tingnan nating mabuti ang mga development dito sa isyung ito at pag-aralan kung ano ang mga tunay na mga nangyayari (Let’s examine first the developments in this issue to determine what’s really happening),” Iniguez, head of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Public Affairs Committee, said.

Outspoken Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz, for his part, said he supports a congressional inquiry into the matter but questioned the timing and purpose.

“Why are they only raising the issue now? Is she cramming because she only has two more years in office?” Cruz said, apparently referring to President Arroyo.

Cap on profits

Meanwhile, a pro-administration lawmaker proposed that Congress limit the profits of state-owned National Power Corp. (Napocor), Meralco, and other power generators and distributions to bring down the cost of electricity.

“It’s time that we review the Public Service Act and maybe the Epira (Electric Power Industry Reform Act) of 2001. We should limit the profitability of public utilities,” Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor told a news forum at Serye Café in Quezon City. He said public utilities are among the most profitable companies in the country.

Defensor said his proposal should cover “all corporations engaged in public service, including shipping and water distribution.”

Other congressmen have proposed that the “system loss charge” be removed from the list of charges that the law allows power distributors to charge their customers.

Quezon Rep. Lorenzo Tañada III, also at the Serye forum, said families making “unconscionable” profits out of electricity should be exposed.

“Let us know who are these families who are enriching themselves at the expense of consumers,” he said.

He said a congressional investigation should not be limited to Meralco but should include Napocor and private power producers as well.

“Let us not concentrate on Meralco. Let us look at the entire basket. To me, the real culprits behind high electricity rates are Napocor and IPPs,” he added.

At a separate forum on power sponsored by the Energy department, Secretary Angelo Reyes asked the Department of Finance to review the imposition of VAT on systems loss. Reyes relayed the request to Finance Undersecretary Jeremias Paul.

Paul heads the DOF’s Corporate Affairs Group, one of whose tasks is to monitor the cash flows of government-run corporations.

“I’m not the tax expert, but as I said I will talk with BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) and get their reaction on taxing system loss,” Paul said.

“With it being a loss, then there may be nuisance there. But I’ll look into the details and coordinate with my other colleagues in the department,” Paul said.

At the meeting, Meralco president Jesus Francisco stressed that Meralco is doing its best to lower its systems losses. He said it is costlier for Meralco to breach the 9.5 percent cap on systems loss.

“Every percentage in system loss over the cap would cost us probably billions at today’s cost of power. So it would be foolish of us not to go after pilferage and that’s why we spend P300 million for that,” Francisco said.

boo chanco's column today at philstar.
http://philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008050820

Peak rates

Sometimes I wonder who is feeding Ate Glue misinformation that makes the President sound (I hesitate to use the word but there is no other)… stupid. For instance, this business of stopping Meralco from buying at the electricity spot market during peak hours, when power is at its most expensive, makes Ate Glue sound intellectually dishonest (I refuse to believe she is stupid). At the very least, she is technically misinformed.

Buying from the WESM or wholesale electricity spot market to cover peak demand cannot be helped by Meralco unless it wants to risk a blackout. The more important point is that Wesm is essentially Napocor because of the delayed privatization. Napocor could have easily instructed their traders to ignore market conditions (high demand for power, low supply available) and bid low instead of high (as they did).

When Ate Glue said Meralco should buy cheaper non peak power (for example at midnight) instead of expensive peak power (at high noon), surely she must know that Meralco cannot store the power it bought at non peak to be used at peak. Electricity supply and demand and therefore price, are sensitive to time of use, something Ate Glue appears to have ignored.

Then again, Meralco also couldn’t have bought all its requirements cheaply from Napocor off peak because in recent weeks, it didn’t have enough coal to power its plants and the summer season has limited use of hydro. Napocor was using its oil fired plants flat out for base load and those plants produce expensive power. In the end, I think everything is propaganda, a diversionary tactic of Ate Glue and her minions to focus public ire away from them. Or maybe, they are softening up the Lopezes hoping they will be annoyed enough to sell out to… Ashmore, maybe?

Meralco is a highly regulated company whose rates are determined by a government body whose members were appointed by Ate Glue. I am confident Meralco can defend its figures because it cannot charge one centavo more than allowed by the regulatory board and only after exhaustive public hearings. The details of its contracts with sister companies are publicly available at the ERC and I know that the GSIS chief was also given his own copy.

I see all the attacks on Meralco today to be really meant for ABS-CBN. This administration is pissed big time with the independent editorial stance of the professional team of journalists running the news operations of ABS-CBN. I suspect they just want the Lopezes to assert their owner’s right to control the output of ABS-CBN’s newscasts and ANC. I doubt that would happen.

As I have mentioned here in this column, I have worked (and still am working) with the Lopezes and I know they have not interfered with the editorial prerogatives of the journalists working for them. I have worked as editor of the Manila Chronicle and as head of ABS-CBN News and I was allowed to exercise my independent judgment in both instances. I am confident some of the country’s most respected journalists who have served in top editorial functions like Amando Doronila, Rod Reyes, Benjie Defensor and Vergel Santos will back me up on this point.

If the administration’s propagandists want to convince anybody in the ABS-CBN organization to see things their way, they have to work on Maria Ressa and her crew and not on Meralco or the Lopezes. The current generations of Lopezes are essentially low key, averse to publicity and not politically oriented. As the late Geny Lopez so aptly put it, “I am not my father.” They are picking a fight with the wrong people.

Coal bribes driving up electricity rates
GOTCHA By Jarius Bondoc
Friday, May 9, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Opinion&p=49&type=2&sec=25&aid=20080508111

Naghalo ang balat sa tinalupan, they’d say in Tagalog. Everyone every which way is joining the electricity fray. Sen. Miriam Santiago is to lead a joint Senate-House probe of Meralco’s “antitrust breaches.” Co-chair Rep. Mikey Arroyo rushes back from extended American holiday in time to summon the power distributor’s execs for Monday. Ally Sen. Joker Arroyo (not related) cautions Malacañang against seizing Meralco from the Lopez clan. Executive Sec. Ed Ermita and Presidential Counsel Sergio Apostol deny any such takeover. It’s only GSIS boss Winston Garcia with 33-percent shares who’s squeezing transparency out of Meralco, they chorus, and the Palace has nothing to do with it. Yet Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye butts in that the Palace is backing Garcia all the way. Sensing business unease with the admin harassing a private firm, Gov. Joey Salceda as Gloria Arroyo’s economic guru assures that the President intends no Meralco capture. But party mates led by Rep. Danny Suarez sneer that the Lopezes deserve whatever is about to hit them.

Mrs. Arroyo adds to the din with baffling, baseless remarks. First, she incites industrialists to help her force Meralco to match electricity rates in Visayas-Mindanao. Then she orders state-owned Napocor to cut by half its pass-on charge of generated electricity to Meralco. She also wonders aloud why electricity rates are soaring in Luzon, where Meralco is the biggest retailer, when oil comprises only one percent of overall generating costs.

Mrs. Arroyo’s statements only frighten the businessmen she hoped to enlist. A President-led attack on the country’s biggest power firm means it’s open season on all other private enterprises. It also could hurt the bloc held by Garcia, consisting of mutual funds GSIS, SSS, Philhealth, and Pag-IBIG. Cutting Napocor rates would repeat the fiasco of 2002-2004, when Mrs. Arroyo similarly capped its rates. Napocor’s losses then ballooned to P1.2 trillion, a third of which came from the heady years, pulling down the peso and frazzling the fiscal situation. It had to take a hated 12-percent value-added tax to avert crisis. As for oil for generators being only a percent of Luzon costs, industry monitors fret over where the President gets her figures. Before world crude prices breached $100 a barrel, oil already formed four, not one, percent of generating costs.

And that leads to Napocor’s main generator fuel: coal. Luzon’s four coal-fired power plants produce 35 percent of kilowatt-hours. The dirty fuel accounts for 30 percent of generating costs. And since generation forms on average over 60 percent of consumers’ monthly electricity bill, coal is the real cause of high electricity prices.

Yet, not one of the admin pols now ranting against power costs is about to look at the coal mess. It would be too embarrassing for the Palace. For, presidential appointees at Napocor routinely have been buying coal at overprice, for billion-peso kickbacks. Worse, the Napocor crooks appear to be reporting to a lawmaker closely tied to Malacañang.

In 2007 they filched P877.5 million from five 65,000-ton shipments from April to August. The modus operandi employed top-level deceit. Napocor simply declared a coal shortage and the need for emergency imports to avert blackouts. It tripped the Luzon grid to prove its point, and then called for bids on too short notice so no supplier could conform. To repair the bidding failure, Napocor was “forced” to negotiate directly with Australia’s Hunter Valley Coal Corp., thru local agent Glencore Far East Philippines AG. The agreed price was $84 a ton (at P50:$1), when the going rate in Australia then was $30.

Consumerists sued Napocor president Cyril del Callar for graft. Implicated were VP-Bidding Carlos Guadarrama and two other bigwigs.

The Ombudsman had yet to act on the charges when Napocor again invoked coal shortage early this year. It rushed to buy three 65,000-ton shiploads from Indonesia’s PT Marsitero Marloan, thru skeleton company TransPacific Consolidated Resources Inc. in Manila. Guadarrama faxed TCRI an invitation to bid on Feb. 12 to Danarra Hotel Business Center, which the Quezon City hotel staff says had been shut since December. TCRI was formed only five months prior with P1 million capital, P62,500 paid up. Yet Del Callar awarded it a P956-million contract. TCRI’s price was $109.50 per ton (at P40.718:$1), when the going rate in Indonesia was $77. Total overprice: P258 million.

To pull the trick, Napocor always buys coal on emergency instead of storing up as told by the energy department. Notably, private generators Quezon Gas in Luzon and STEAG in Mindanao stockpiled recently for only P60 to P80 a ton. The hearing on Monday predictably will gloss over this. It will focus on Meralco’s electricity purchases from Lopez-owned generators. Napocor sleaze will be exempted from scrutiny, lest the powerful patron be exposed right there and then.

Eye on the prize
SKETCHES By Ana Marie Pamintuan
Friday, May 9, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Opinion&p=49&type=2&sec=25&aid=20080508112

In the latest skirmish between the Arroyo administration and the Lopez clan, with Winston Garcia leading the charge, the administration should define its main objective. Achieving the objective will depend on whether the administration can sell it to the public as a just cause. Bringing down power rates makes sense and is a popular cause. Investors have long complained about high power costs in the Philippines compared to the rest of Asia.

After clearly defining its objective, the administration must then clarify how it intends to achieve its aim. The means must be as acceptable as the end. If the government’s idea of bringing down power rates is by wresting control of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) from the Lopez clan, it would have to persuade the public that the government can do a better job of running a private company. It would also have to explain why it is going in the opposite direction from the trend toward privatization. Unless the administration can give those explanations, it should just limit itself to its avowed stance of demanding better management of Meralco.

In these days of soaring prices, an administration with credibility would find it easy to take on a private utility that is supposedly mismanaged and keeps passing on all its financial burdens to consumers. But an administration that has gone to incredible lengths to suppress information on a $329-million broadband deal is in no position to demand transparency and good corporate management. A government led by someone who married into old money should also be careful about raising the oligarchy bogey.

* * *

It is easy to demonize a private monopoly that netted P3.6 billion last year. Such earnings are in fact small in a business with P100 billion in assets. But no one likes soaring power rates, and it is not easy for consumers to like Meralco. Consumers who read the fine print in their electricity bills would see a long list of charges on top of the distribution charge that actually goes to Meralco. The company likes to emphasize that it is merely collecting for other agencies: the transmission charge goes to Transco and the generation charge to the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and the independent power producers.

Households that consume no more than 100 kilowatt-hours a month get subsidized rates. Those of us who are underwriting the subsidy are taxed – that’s the Lifeline Rate Subsidy in your bill, which goes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). The BIR also collects the 12 percent Revised Value Added Tax (RVAT) on electricity, which accounts for a hefty chunk of our monthly billings. Transco and the power generators charge unused and wasted or pilfered electricity to Meralco. This is the System Loss Charge in your bill, and Meralco is being criticized for passing it on to consumers. The utility explains that it is a common practice in the industry and Meralco will abolish the charge if the requirement will be imposed on all other power distributors nationwide. Some politicians are calling for the suspension of the RVAT and Malacañang has ordered the Napocor to cut its charges to Meralco by half to bring down power rates. As of yesterday, Napocor had not yet carried out the order, and Garcia was still railing against Meralco management.

* * *

Is this all saber rattling, or a corporate raid by a vindictive government? Is the prize lower power rates, or Meralco and the comeuppance of the Lopez clan, or do these go hand in hand? The Lopez clan owns the ABS-CBN network, which has been critical of the Arroyo administration.

Yesterday Oscar Lopez, who chairs First Philippine Holdings Corp., said he was “sick and tired of this business” and was ready to sell FPHC’s 33.4 percent stake in Meralco to the government. Shareholders have a right to demand transparency from the management of a company, especially one that is vested with public interest. The Government Service Insurance System, which Garcia heads, and several other government agencies hold 33 percent of Meralco shares.

Meralco cites Supreme Court decisions providing guidelines on the disclosure of corporate records to shareholders. The utility says a shareholder’s right to disclosure is not absolute and must not compromise the interests of the company and other shareholders.

Yesterday Oscar Lopez bemoaned that the company has not been allowed to raise its rates since June 2003. This is because electricity has become a highly politicized commodity. Presidents do not want to be blamed for high power costs.

They prefer to postpone the pain, leaving their successors to clean up the mess when the time comes to make power rates reflect true market conditions. This is what could happen again if Napocor cuts its charges to Meralco. That cut will be recovered by Napocor as soon as it is able, which in this case is unlikely to be any time before noon of June 30, 2010.

The longer you postpone the pain, the bigger the mess and the heavier the burden on consumers when it finally comes.

The government can cut the taxes that are reflected in the monthly bills, particularly the RVAT. It can cut royalties on natural gas. But can the government risk a substantial cut in revenues? Sound fiscal management has been one of the few strong points of this administration. If it cuts certain taxes to bring down power rates, or if it drastically reduces tariffs on crude oil to cut both power and fuel prices, it will have to find alternative sources of revenue if it does not want public services to suffer. It can impose “sin taxes.” It can demand better performance and less corruption from revenue collectors. It can speed up the privatization of Napocor, which may stop the company from, among other things, buying coal at steep prices. The proceeds from privatization will boost the government’s fiscal position, but any resulting cut in power rates will not be immediate. The other answers are long-term: investments in alternative sources of fuel and new technology for power generation, and investments in a more efficient system of power distribution to cut systems losses. But seeing what is happening to Meralco and Napocor, investing in the Philippine power sector could look like a losing proposition.

bumili na kayo ng shares ng Meralco! P67 na lang! Bibili na ako!

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/April/11/pix/GEO.jpg

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/May/09/pix/PLANTA.jpg
Northern Negros Geothermal Power Plant
Brgy. Mailum, Bago City, Negros Occidental

Bishop still no to buffer zone entry but admits he cannot stop PNOC
IT’S THE MOST EXPEDITIOUS ANSWER
TO POWER SHORTAGE, OSMEÑA SAYS
BY CARLA GOMEZ
;
Bacolod Bishop Vicente Navarra yesterday said he stands pat on his personal position against the entry of the Philippine National Oil Co-Energy Development Corp. into the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park buffer zone to tap more geothermal energy, but admitted that he can not do anything about it if government goes ahead with the project.

However, Former Senator John Osmeña yesterday said allowing PNOC-EDC’s entry in to the buffer zone to tap more geothermal energy for its North Negros Geothermal Power Plant in Bago City is the most immediate and expeditious answer to the current power problem Negros is facing.

“There is no free meal, if we want power, we have to make a sacrifice,” said Osmeña, who was chairman of its Committee on Energy while in the Senate.

Gov. Isidro Zayco yesterday said he expects the Negros Occidental Sanggunian to come up with a decision on whether to concur with PNOC-EDC’s plan to enter the buffer zone or not next week.

We are giving everybody a chance to air their views and be heard on the matter, he said.

We will go with the sentiment of the majority, he said.

Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said he met with Navarra Wednesday night to explain the need for the PNOC-EDC entry into the buffer zone to meet a serious power shortage in Negros Occidental.

The NNGP that has a capacity for 49 megawatts currently generates only 4 megawatts.

Reyes said he understands the concern of the bishop and the environment groups on the need to prevent environmental damage within the buffer zone and assured that measures would be taken to address them.

The bishop yesterday said Reyes has asked to meet with him and persons opposed to the buffer zone entry because of the damage it will do to its biodiversity on Monday, to present the government position and mitigating measures to be taken.

The bishop said he told Reyes he personally holds on to his position, but it would be good if he could meet with the other oppositors so if the project pushes through they would understand what is going to be done.

“My position is still the same, but if government pushes through with the program let it be, we cannot do anything about it,” he said.

Osmeña said there has really been no provision for power in Negros and Panay in all of the planning that was being done by the Department of Energy since 2002.

The first geothermal project in the Visayas in Leyte was really envisioned to feed its electricity to Luzon, he said.

That is why the transmission line they built from Leyte went through Bicol to Luzon, and not to Negros, he pointed out.

The link between Cebu and Negros Oriental was built to be able to deliver power from the Palinpinon Geothermal Power Plants in Negros Oriental to Cebu, and not for transmission of power from Leyte to Cebu to Negros, he said.

Osmeña said he and then National Power Corp. president Ernesto Aboitiz questioned why the power from Leyte was being sent to Manila, and prompted the building the submarine cables that has allowed power to brought to Negros, too.

In short, he said, Negros and Panay have fallen victim to imperial Manila and Cebu

That is why he has been warning since 2001 that Negros and Panay are going to have power shortages, he said.

The NNPP would have been able to address the power shortage of Negros unfortunately PNOC-EDC was not allowed into the buffer zone, he said.

The NNPP is the most immediate and the most expeditious answer to the current power problem, within 10 to 12 months they could drill wells in the buffer zone for additional geothermal power, he said.

But this would require political will to overcome the resistance from the NGOs and the bishop, he said

Osmeña said he is challenging those opposed to PNOC-EDC’s entry into the buffer zone to look at what the National Power Corp. has done in Negros Oriental.

“The forest reserve being protected by NPC in the area where the Palinpinon Geothermal Power Plants are is one of the best forested areas in the country,” he said.

“It is expensive to protect nature and the one who does it is the one who benefits from the forest directly, and in this case, it is the power company,” he said.

Osmeña said if the NNPP goes full steam with the production of 49 megawatts, it will solve the power shortage in Negros for four to five years giving enough time to pursue co-generation of power at sugar mills and hydro power for the long term.

“Negros officials and businessmen should grab the bull by the horns and take the initiative in solving the problem, and stop depending on the national government,” Osmeña said.

A provincial energy task force could map out such plans, he suggested.*CPG

From the Center
with Rolly Espina OPINIONS

A healthy dialog ends in breakthrough


When talks are conducted in an atmosphere of open minds and willingness to explore solutions to a problem, the result is often enlightening. And that’s what happened Wednesday evening when Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes paid a call on Bacolod Bishop Vicente Navarra.

For Reyes, as he explained to his staff and myself, the stop at the Bishop’s House was very vital since he had a “high regard” for the prelate’s ideas about the PNOC-EDC geothermal well in Mailum, Bago City.

Thus, he hazarded a one and a half-hour wait by Negrense officials and stakeholders at the Nature’s Village to call on Bishop Navarra. I happened to be with the small group of DOE officials who called on the Bacolod Bishop.

In short, since there was no restriction on my presence, I thought that it was a conversation I could listen to and report in this column.

Thus, I can report that Bishop Navarra ended up allowing with very “strong reservations” the geothermal project subject, of course, to Reyes’ fair assurance that the holistic plan to preserve the biodiversity, and flora and of the Kanlaon National Park are protected and preserved or, otherwise, rehabilitated.

Bishop Navarra pointedly stated that he was worried about the fowls and animals of the park and the number of trees which allegedly had been felled by PNOC-EDC in the buffer zone.

When he gave his original go-signal to Reyes to proceed at the government’s wish, the DOE chief stressed that he was not there to ram down the throats of Navarra and the environmentalist groups the bureaucratic thinking.

He remonstrated that “like you, I was also former DENR Secretary and share your concern for the flora and fauna.”

And Reyes did not hesitate to ask Bishop Navarra for the latter’s ideas on what to do to mitigate the damage done if already accomplished and to restore to health the fauna and flora of the area.

Acting on the Bishop’s rejoinder, Reyes promised a program that will have to be clearly monitored and responsibility pinpointed. Reyes immediately instructed his staff to call for a Bacolod meet of the PNOC, EDC and the DENR as well as DOE top officials to craft a program to preserve the Kanlaon National Park.

That was quick action on the part of Reyes. Incidentally, former Sugar Administrator James Ledesma yesterday complemented Reyes as a fast decision-maker and one who can immediately see through a problem and retain his focus on the essentials.

And that was what struck me. Bishop Navarra, himself, was impassioned but also remained open-minded insofar as the mitigating proposals by Reyes were concerned.

In short, the meeting (instant) between the prelate and Reyes ended in a positive note rather than a standoff since both sides maintained an open mind insofar as problem-solving was concerned.

The reality is that the 40 megawatts from the geothermal plant is badly needed by Bacolod and Negros Occidental. And the brownouts that have plagued the city during the past few weeks are already causing tremendous losses to business establishments. And no ends in sight in the near future unless the problem of power is solved. Or eased, at least.

I also appreciate the concern by the environmentalists for the fauna and flora of the Kanlaon National Park.

In short, something must be done to have both concerns addressed.

While alternatives are desirable, the fact is that the only source of indigenous power is that of the Mailum geothermal power. There are others but these are such things as coal-powered plants, wind power, hydroelectric power. But these are not available and no one has come forward to pick up the cost of such ventures.

Another was the proposal by PNOC to buy 15 one-megawatt generator sets for Iloilo City. And, the other, the rehabilitation of the PNOC power barge. But these are expensive and not immediately available.

Thus, the energy distributors of Panay and Negros Occidental had signed a contract with Kepco for it to supply the power needs of their respective service areas coal power by 2010.

The oil price hikes make diesel-power generators just as expensive.

Thus, the only alternative solution is to give way to the exploration of the geothermal dig with rehabilitative and remedial measures to be crafted and submitted by the DOE with the cooperation of the PNOC and the EDC, the latter a Lopez-owned company.

Adopting hard line positions could only have aggravated the problem of economic losses. The fauna and flora may be temporarily preserved but in the long run, they too will disappear when the economic doldrums reach its nadir.

Thus, I consider Wednesday night’s dialog an lightening exercise of statesmanship by both sides – the bishop and Secretary Reyes.

Things were made possible by rational minds.*

reprinted from the visayan daily star

www.visayandailystar.com

European investors call for lower power costs, transparency

Friday, May 9, 2008
The Philippine Star

European businessmen yesterday urged the government to improve the business climate in the country by reducing energy costs, improving the transportation network, promoting transparency and dealing with graft and corruption.

Participants at the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) Business Conference held at the Renaissance Hotel in Makati City noted that the price of energy in the Philippines is among the highest in the world.

The foreign businessmen led by ECCP president Hubert d’Aboville also urged the government to forge a stronger economic partnership with the European Union.

Ambassador Alistair MacDonald of the European Commission said the Philippines is not taking advantage of opportunities that Europe has to offer in terms of trade and investments and that other Asian countries are doing better in this regard.

Macdonald listed seven things that needed to be done, among them improving business climate by cutting red tape, dealing with corruption and promoting transparency.

He also cited the need to upgrade the energy, transport and water infrastructure sectors in the country, improve the fight against poverty which includes promoting family planning, and accelerate the peace process so conflict areas can contribute to nation building.

MacDonald echoed the observation of foreign businessmen that the government must improve its antiquated transport facilities which use up costly energy.

“The price of electricity is higher in the Philippines than in almost any other country in the region while the basic transport network, notwithstanding work in progress on the road, rail and the roll-on and roll-off remains far below,” MacDonald noted.

D’Aboville added European businessmen are willing to invest in infrastructure projects as well as improve basic transport facilities in the country.

He also called on the government to address the problem of smuggling to encourage more investments in the manufacturing sector.

“Otherwise, there will be no incentive for the creation of manufacturing plants. Let me add, we need the continuous supply of power also because without power, there will be no economic activity,” he said.

French Ambassador Gerard Chesnel, representing the presidency of the European Union (EU), in his introductory remarks also sought increased economic cooperation between the Philippines and the EU.

“The economic exchange between the Philippines and the EU is not at the level that it should be,” Chesnel noted, adding that this could be due to a lack of information.

“The French people know very little about the Philippines,” he pointed out, even as he encouraged improving partnerships and cooperative agreements.

Trade Secretary Peter Favila, for his part, noted the “very good cooperation” between the EU and the Philippines, and asked the EU to “support proposals for free trade by amending protectionist economic provisions” in the Constitution.

Macdonald affirmed the EU’s support for the lifting of such economic provisions, but stressed that “this does not mean that we support Charter change.”

During the forum, D’Aboville stressed the need for the Philippine government to open NAIA Terminal 3.

“More than three years have now passed and there is minimal indication of any real progress having been made with this matter. NAIA Terminal 3 has not been opened and the investors have not been compensated,” he said.

MacDonald, for his part, said foreign businessmen have not had “the pleasure of getting to know the NAIA-3.”

Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Philippine Holdings Inc., echoed the same sentiment.

“Let us settle once and for all the issue that is NAIA-3,” Lopez told the forum.

D’Aboville said even if the government were to sign today an agreement with an international or local contractor to complete the airport, it is unlikely to be ready within the next 12 to 18 months.

D’Aboville said it is vital for the government to improve the condition of the airports in the country since it is the first thing that potential foreign investors see.

“(Airports are) their first impression (of the country),” D’Aboville said. “I’m sorry to say that it has gone from bad to worse. A drastic improvement is needed.”

Favila however declared the government can open NAIA-3 before the end of the year, saying a local contractor was already tapped to finish the work on the mothballed airport.

“We already have a contractor. It was selected during a bidding early this month,” Favila said without naming the supposed contractor.

“The Philippine government is committed to open the airport and this time we will do it ourselves,” Favila said. “We want to open the terminal at the soonest possible time.”

D’Aboville, on the other hand, pointed out the need for the Philippine government to pay its contractors.

He said the European community is already getting frustrated with the Philippine government over the delay in opening of the airport terminal.

“There is really a frustration among the Europeans because the government always announces that they will open the terminal in six months and then say that the opening will be postponed for yet another six months,” D’Aboville said.

NAIA-3 remains closed even after its completion in 2002 after President Arroyo abrogated the contract with the project’s main contractor Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc. (Piatco), calling the contract “onerous.”

The Supreme Court later upheld the government’s position and declared the contract null and void for having violated the provisions of the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) law. - Iris Gonzales, Elisa Osorio

Source: http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20080508118

Did anybody see the treasurer of Meralco on TV, Pure Guilt emanates from his facial expression.

House bill to protect electric consumers
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=politics4_may9_2008
Enough is enough of the systems loss charges that are jacking up the electricity bills of Meralco customers.

Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing issued this battlecry as he filed House Bill 4073 to repeal Republic Act 7832, or the Anti-electricity and Electric Transmission Lines-Materials Pilferage Act of 1994.

According to Bagatsing, RA 7832’s provision that provides that distribution utilities like Meralco may pass on to the consumers 9.5 percent of their systems losses is anti-poor. “Consumers have been hit hard as this component is a big percentage of their monthly bills,” he said.

“We now feel that distribution utilities have been unjust and unreasonable in continuously passing on their losses to the consumers while they remain remiss in putting up controls to plug pilferage,” Bagatsing said.

“This even has the effect of class legislation, giving such distribution utilities to recover their loss by passing it on to consumers,” he added.
Bagatsing pointed out that other public utilities had also suffered losses but that they were never given the chance to pass it on to end-users. If passed into law, Bagatsing’s bill would stop distributors from passing on to their customers their systems losses.
Systems loss refers to electricity lost due to electricity and due to electrical conversion to heat as it passes onto electric wires.

Meralco claims that it had lowered its systems loss to single digit from a high of over 20 percent. With RA 7832 allowing 9.5 percent of systems loss to be passed on to end-users, this claim by Meralco means that its customers are now shouldering all of its systems losses.

The government and the Government Service Insurance System are campaigning for transparency and good corporate management in Meralco to protect GSIS investments in the power distributor and to lower electricity rates.

The GSIS holds four of the 11 seats in the Meralco board, but it complains of not being given access to pertinent documents on the operations and contracts entered into by Meralco.

The state pension fund is mulling planning civil and criminal charges against Meralco over a P30-billion overcharging by Meralco of its customers in 2003. The Supreme Court ordered Meralco to refund the P30 billion to its customers, who were saddled by Meralco with its income tax charges from 1992 to 2002.

In 2004, the Supreme Court reprimanded Meralco anew for increasing power rates without the Energy Regulatory Commission conducting hearings on its rates increase petition.

Ayokong i-takeover ng GSIS ang Meralco kasi luku-loko na nga ang GSIS baka madamay Meralco.

and the govt should not be in the business of making electricity and distributing it. at sigurado malalaglag lang meralco sa populist policies and may become another napacor with its astronomical debts.

Ibang klaseng tumira ang ABS CBN. Kunyari makabayan sila, but the truth is, they protect the welfares of thier sister companies MERALCO, is one. All of these company's dominates in thier field.

The system loss can never be charge to the public. They have to correct. But mostly they don't because whatever loss they had, they will simply pass it to the paying public. Simple dba. You don't need to chase those electric stealers we'll anyway the stolen electricity will be paid by the customers...:)

The people should know that they have so much to regret when paying electric bills. This is worst than ABS CBN attacking allegations on administration. The people pays the price but slowly they learn. Thank god we have now government owned news channel. :)

Ibang klaseng tumira ang ABS CBN. Kunyari makabayan sila, but the truth is, they protect the welfares of thier sister companies MERALCO, is one. All of these company's dominates in thier field.

The system loss can never be charge to the public. They have to correct. But mostly they don't because whatever loss they had, they will simply pass it to the paying public. Simple dba. You don't need to chase those electric stealers we'll anyway the stolen electricity will be paid by the customers...:)

The people should know that they have so much to regret when paying electric bills. This is worst than ABS CBN attacking allegations on administration. The people pays the price but slowly they learn. Thank god we have now government owned news channel. :)

to be fair with meralco, most if not all of the power utilities and cooperatives in the country pass on to the consumers their systems loss. i don't know though if its allowed by law.

we need something to lower the cost of electricity here not Meralco takeover. Teka nga pala, nagsimula lang ito sa banat ni PGMA sa Meralco na mataas ang singil sa kuryente naging Meralco takeover business na... ano ba iyan?

GSIS won’t buy out Meralco
By Perseus Echeminada
Sunday, May 11, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=2008051052

The Government Service Insurance System is not buying out the owners of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) even if the GSIS has the money for it, a top GSIS official said yesterday.

“The GSIS has no plan to take over Meralco. The only demand is for a change of management,” Estrella Elamparo, GSIS vice president for corporate affairs, reiterated to reporters during the weekly Kapihan sa Sulo Hotel news forum in Quezon City.

Elamparo said the GSIS has enough funds to buy out the Lopez clan, whose stake in Meralco is estimated at about P25 billion, but she said this is not being considered at this time.

She said the main concern of the GSIS was to protect its investment in Meralco and make it grow.

Elamparo was echoing an earlier pronouncement of GSIS president Winston Garcia in response to accusations that he was paving the way for a government takeover of Meralco when he demanded to see the financial records of the power firm.

Last Thursday, Garcia said he was ready to sit down with Meralco executives for possible buyout negotiations after First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC) chairman Oscar Lopez said the government could have Meralco because he was “sick and tired of this business.”

Lopez said the government could “go ahead and buy us out,” adding that Meralco was “being used as a convenient ploy to divert attention from other pressing problems of government.”

First Holdings controls Meralco and other business interests of the Lopez clan.

Elamparo said that as a major stockholder of Meralco, GSIS has the right to push for a leadership change and for access to the corporate records of the company. GSIS holds 23 percent of the government’s 33 percent interest in Meralco, a publicly listed company.

She said that while GSIS has enough funds to increase its stake or even take over Meralco, such option is not being considered at the moment.

She said the main concern of GSIS is to protect its members and make its multibillion-peso funds grow.

Meanwhile, National Power Corp. president Cyril del Callar also said at the forum that Meralco should also buy power during off-peak hours when cost is P5 cheaper than during peak hours.

He said Napocor has to shut down a power plant during off-peak hours in Metro Manila due to lack of buyers.

Del Callar said if Meralco buys during off-peak hours, the generation charge may eventually go down to the benefit of consumers.

He said Meralco can avail itself of cheaper power – as mandated by law – if it buys during off-peak hours.

He said the prices of electricity in the provinces are lower than in Metro Manila because electric cooperatives make power purchases even during off-peak hours.

A Meralco spokesman, however, earlier said they buy power during peak hours because that’s when they need it and that electricity cannot be stored if is purchased during off-peak hours.

GSIS won’t buy out Meralco
By Perseus Echeminada
Sunday, May 11, 2008
http://philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=2008051052

The Government Service Insurance System is not buying out the owners of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) even if the GSIS has the money for it, a top GSIS official said yesterday.

“The GSIS has no plan to take over Meralco. The only demand is for a change of management,” Estrella Elamparo, GSIS vice president for corporate affairs, reiterated to reporters during the weekly Kapihan sa Sulo Hotel news forum in Quezon City.

Elamparo said the GSIS has enough funds to buy out the Lopez clan, whose stake in Meralco is estimated at about P25 billion, but she said this is not being considered at this time.

She said the main concern of the GSIS was to protect its investment in Meralco and make it grow.

Elamparo was echoing an earlier pronouncement of GSIS president Winston Garcia in response to accusations that he was paving the way for a government takeover of Meralco when he demanded to see the financial records of the power firm.

Last Thursday, Garcia said he was ready to sit down with Meralco executives for possible buyout negotiations after First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC) chairman Oscar Lopez said the government could have Meralco because he was “sick and tired of this business.”

Lopez said the government could “go ahead and buy us out,” adding that Meralco was “being used as a convenient ploy to divert attention from other pressing problems of government.”

First Holdings controls Meralco and other business interests of the Lopez clan.

Elamparo said that as a major stockholder of Meralco, GSIS has the right to push for a leadership change and for access to the corporate records of the company. GSIS holds 23 percent of the government’s 33 percent interest in Meralco, a publicly listed company.

She said that while GSIS has enough funds to increase its stake or even take over Meralco, such option is not being considered at the moment.

She said the main concern of GSIS is to protect its members and make its multibillion-peso funds grow.

Meanwhile, National Power Corp. president Cyril del Callar also said at the forum that Meralco should also buy power during off-peak hours when cost is P5 cheaper than during peak hours.

He said Napocor has to shut down a power plant during off-peak hours in Metro Manila due to lack of buyers.

Del Callar said if Meralco buys during off-peak hours, the generation charge may eventually go down to the benefit of consumers.

He said Meralco can avail itself of cheaper power – as mandated by law – if it buys during off-peak hours.

He said the prices of electricity in the provinces are lower than in Metro Manila because electric cooperatives make power purchases even during off-peak hours.

A Meralco spokesman, however, earlier said they buy power during peak hours because that’s when they need it and that electricity cannot be stored if is purchased during off-peak hours.

now that is good news... :banana::banana::banana::banana:

Why does Meralco Continue on swindling its customers:

1. After Passing on their Tax Payment to the Customers,

2. After Charging the Customer of Pilferage-Jumper-Ninakaw na Kuryento fee.

3. Now, they are trying to charge the customers with the amount it is supposed to pay the government for failing to honor a 10-year power supply contract. It is Meralco’s fault no to honor their contract so why charge the innocent customers....

^ These are examples of Corrupt Business Practices. Tapos Akala mo kung sino mag-malinis yung ABS-CBN pinagbibintangan pa si PGMA. Ang ebidensya sa Meralco ay maliwanag na nakasulat sa papel.

Mandurugas Talaga ang Meralco! Meralco is Guilty of Corruption. Syndikato!

Read This!!!
Meralco can’t charge customers under onerous deal, says OSG
http://www.bworld.com.ph/BW051208/content.php?id=041

GOVERNMENT LAWYERS want regulators to void a P20-billion settlement that allows Lopez-owned Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) to charge customers the amount it is supposed to pay the government for failing to honor a 10-year power supply contract.
Meralco
AFP

In a motion for intervention filed before the Energy Regulatory Commission, the Office of the Solicitor General said the deal had not passed legal review.

It also said the four-year-old settlement is disadvantageous to the government and unfair to consumers, adding to the anti-Meralco sentiment that has been haunting the utility for past week.

No less than President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has hit the Lopez family for high power rates, a move seen by critics as political maneuvering.

"It is incumbent upon [the Solicitor General] to present to the court what she considers shall legally uphold the best interest of the government although it may run counter to a client’s position," Solicitor General Agnes VST Devanadera said in a motion dated May 8.

She said the settlement, which stemmed from Meralco’s revocation of its 10-year power supply contract with state-owned National Power Corp. (Napocor) a year earlier in 2003, is void since it had not passed through her office.

Meralco terminated the contract since it could get the power from independent power producers at cheaper rates under a restructured power sector.

Under the 2003 deal, Meralco will pay Napocor P27.515 billion for failing to buy the electricity supply of about 60,000 gigawatt-hours between 2002 and 2004.

On the other hand, Napocor will pay Meralco P7.5 billion for its failure to adequately provide transmission lines to privately owned power plants that also supply electricity to the Lopez company.

Once approved by the ERC, the state firm will have to pay the net amount of P20 billion over five to six years. The deal also allows Meralco to charge customers the amount.

Ms. Devanadera said the Napocor charter mandates it to submit all pleadings and compromise agreements to the Solicitor General for review.

Had it known about it, government attorneys would have struck down the provisions for being disadvantageous to both the government and consumers, she pointed out.

"The required approvals were never sought by Napocor," the Solicitor General said, adding that when Napocor had settled the issue, it effectively amended the original contract for electricity supply.

As a result, Napocor’s original claim against Meralco for the contracted but unconsumed energy was cut by around P7.465 billion, Ms. Devanadera said. The Lopez firm should pay the original contracted price, she added.

She also noted that the deal allows Meralco to pass the P20 billion cost to its customers.

Ms. Devanadera said the "pass-on" provision violates state policy. "The same should be struck down for being against public interest and public policy," she said.

But a Meralco official hit the intervention for its timing and allegedly unfair judgment.

In a teleconference on Friday night, Meralco Vice-President Ivanna G. de la Peña defended the settlement.

She said Napocor had never waived its rights because "the [contracted but unused power] happened because of the Asian financial crisis. The capacities were also underutilized."

During the 1997-1998 currency crisis, demand for power slid, and even Napocor could not generate power at the time, she pointed out. The settlement, she added, was a "recognition of what is fair and reasonable."

She also likened the deal to a "take-or-pay" contract. Since the plants were already generating power, the contractor must pay for fixed costs, including the buildings and turbines. The costs will then have to be shouldered by consumers served by the contractor or distributor. Ms. de la Peña also claimed the P20 billion could be reduced to P14.3 billion since the actual volume purchased by Meralco from Napocor had been higher than the baseline quantities specified in the settlement.

A Meralco source claimed the amount could go down further to around P8 billion because of excess purchases in the first few years of the supply contract.

The source also questioned the timing of the Solicitor General’s intervention, an offshoot of the request made by the National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms, Inc. (Nasecore), a long-time detractor.

The Solicitor General’s position followed a string of anti-Meralco sentiment started by the President and Winston Garcia, president and general manager of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).

The GSIS, which owns a fourth of Meralco, has called for a management revamp to compel it to lower rates. Mr. Garcia has also threatened to file large-scale estafa charges against the firm’s management. — Ira P. Pedrasa

MERALCO's monopoly should be abolished to allow other companies to compete against it, and therefore bringing prices down.

Fried in their own fat
To The Point : Emil Jurado

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may14_2008

THE joint Senate-House of Representatives inquiry into the Meralco brouhaha is one congressional investigation that could be salutary and beneficial to millions of Meralco consumers. All these years, the Lopezes have been doing monkey business, frying consumers in their own fat and then laughing themselves all the way to the bank.
Consider these eye openers during the hours-long joint inquiry into Meralco with the end in view of lowering power and electricity rates: First, there were “sweetheart” deals in the purchase of the Lopez-managed Meralco with Independent Power Producers which are owned by the Lopezes.
In the process, the Lopez-owned power producers are reaping billions of pesos, all at the expense of consumers.
* * *
Santa Banana, no matter how the Lopezes try to disguise this, we are all being fried in our lard by the Lopezes when they do all these at the expense of consumers. There is no reason why Meralco rates are much higher than any rates in other places nationwide.
Then, there are onerous “system losses” passed on to consumers. Meralco justified this as a common practice. Oh yeah? Not when the amount passed on to consumers is exorbitant. And take note of this hanky-panky uncovered by Senator Juan Ponce Enrile: Meralco admitted that no less than P51 million that Meralco itself and its utilities are using are also passed on to consumers.
The worst part is that Meralco itself buys from Lopez-owned suppliers purchase of electric meters, electric lines, electric poles and generators, and so forth and so on.
There are more questions to ask: Where do consumers’ deposits go?
I believe the demand of Government Service Insurance System president and chief executive Winston Garcia for Meralco to open its books to the public could only open a can of worms. And the biggest worm is this “pass-on” anomaly by Meralco.
* * *
It’s definitely worth considering, the plan of the GSIS head for government to break up management into two like what Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System did, allowing the Lopez-owned Maynilad Water to control the eastern portion of Metro Manila.
The bottom line to all these is that the Lopezes have long bled the millions of Meralco consumers. It’s time the government step in.
My gulay, try to delay payment of your monthly electric bill, and almost immediately, you get a notice of disconnection. The Lopez-controlled Meralco is not content frying us in our lard. How long will we, consumers, bear its arrogance?
* * *
Trademark theft and copyright infringement will remain one of the government’s perennial headaches if the loopholes, lapses and laxity in giving out certificates of registration at the Intellectual Property Office are not stopped. How ironic, considering that it is the umbrella agency mandated to check, if not eliminate altogether, the high incidence of piracy now pestering the country.
For instance, there’s this mystery shrouding the approval of a registration certificate of a Chinese national and his Filipino wife to market a counterfeit brand of Japanese shovel in the local market. This despite the fact that the product’s trademark (Tombo) has already been registered and listed with the Department of Trade and Industry since 1960 by the family of Filipino businessman Philip Coling, and has been religiously updated since.
Santa Banana, how can this happen if not for the incompetence or outright collusion of some IPO people?
Plus, records reveal that the couple has already been arrested after being caught red-handed possessing 10 truckloads of the fake goods worth more than P3 million in their warehouse in Quezon City and Valenzuela. The raids were conducted sometime in February this year by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the National Police.
Criminal complaints have been filed against the couple but this Chinese national, who actually spent several days in jail, was released after posting bail.
I wrote about this case in my column last April 8. I thought this couple would stop. I was mistaken.
My gulay, the sad part about the whole surreal thing is that, because of the fraudulent approval in January 2008 of the importers’ registration, the Intellectual Property Office has legitimized the marketing of fake, Chinese-made Tombo shovels in the country.
In effect, this will edge out the Coling family as the legitimate distributor of the genuine product, thanks to the inefficiency, if not outright connivance of some IPO personnel with the counterfeiters. The Colings have built up the Tombo shovel business since 1960 and has treated it as some sort of a family heirloom that has been passed on from generation to generation.
In my earlier column, I suggested that in instances like these, the counterfeiters should be made to dig a hole using their fake shovels and throw them into it and cover it up. If that won’t each them a lesson, nothing will.
It also appears as a clear case of bureaucratic foot dragging, is that the Tombo case has been pending with IPO since it was first brought to the attention of IPO lawyers.
According to my information, the IPO appears to be stalling the petition for cancellation of the original Tombo trademark holders. In a recent hearing, all the pieces of evidence presented by the Colings were reportedly thrown out of the window. Worse, the IPO people have not set a date for the next hearing.
On the basis of this case alone, it would seem that the IPO has now become the Intellectual “Piracy” office. Santa Banana, no wonder things are not moving over there. Does this prove that crime does pay?

-------------------------------------------------


Congress moves to plug Meralco’s cost loopholes
By Christine F. Herrera
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=news1_may14_2008

CONGRESS can revoke the franchise of the Manila Electric Co. for violating the “just and reasonable” or the “least cost” principles by passing its costs and bad debts to consumers through excessively high rates, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said yesterday.

“Meralco operates under a franchise, meaning a right conferred by the government to engage in a specific business, including the rights necessary for public utility companies to carry on their operations,” said Santiago, co-chairman of the Joint Congressional Power Commission.

Santiago also said Meralco’s top executives faced criminal charges for allegedly conspiring with the Energy Regulatory Commission and the National Power Corp. to impose higher rates detrimental to the consuming public.
At a panel hearing earlier on Monday, company president Jesus Francisco admitted that Meralco passes on some P500 million a year of its own power consumption to consumers as part of its “systems losses.”

The panel also learned of a plan to pass on bad debts incurred by Meralco and the National Power Corp. to consumers.
“The president of Meralco has admitted that the systems losses are not the fault of the consumers or not due to technicalities or pilferage but from their usage of electricity and bad debts,” invoking the pass through provisions,” Santiago said.

Santiago also blamed the Energy Regulatory Commission for being remiss in regulating Meralco and Napocor, and for failing to limit the amount Meralco could charge to systems losses.
The cap on systems losses was 9.5 percent, but this was abolished by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act that gave the commission the power to set the new limit, though the agency failed to do it, she said.
But Santiago said the commission’s laxity did not make it legal for Meralco to bloat its systems-loss claims.
The Palace yesterday urged lawmakers to plug loopholes in the law that allow power companies such as Meralco to pass their operating costs on to consumers as systems losses.

The President has complained that while the new energy law aims to reduce the cost of electricity, power rates remain high for consumers.
At the hearing Monday, Santiago ordered the commission to immediately set limits on systems losses.

She also ordered the commission to dismiss outright the Meralco petition, backed by Napocor, to pass on to consumers some P66 billion in bad debts incurred by the two companies.
“The consuming public had nothing to do with these debts,” Santiago said. “We were not consulted on acquiring those debts.”

Santiago also said the power commission did not see any problem with Meralco being broken up into two entities as proposed by Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Winston Garcia.
“There’s no problem with that, we already have a model,” she said, referring to the water utility.
The senator said on questioning during the hearing Monday that “Meralco can be faulted for management inefficiency.”
Meralco did not comply with the law, which says the consuming public must get electricity at the least cost possible, she added.
The penalties for management abuse could be legislative, corporate and criminal, she said.
“The legislative remedy provided by the Constitution is for Congress to amend or repeal the Meralco franchise, as required by the common good,” she said.
At a hearing in the House of Representatives, lawmakers yesterday said Meralco should not be charging value-added taxes on its systems losses, which are incorporated into the power bills of its four million customers.
The congressmen also attacked the Bureau of Internal Revenue for saying that it was legal for Meralco to pass on its systems losses to its customers.
Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing said the implementing rules and regulations were “a great departure” from the intent of the new energy law.
“Since when did the [implementing rules and regulations] become more powerful than the law itself?” he said. With Romie A. Evangelista and Roy Pelovello

----------------------------------------------------------------

Letters prove Marcos didn't sequester Meralco from Lopezes
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/95241/Letters-prove-Marcos-didnt-sequester-
Letters prove Marcos didn't sequester Meralco from Lopezes
05/15/2008 | 12:07 AM
Email this | Email the Editor | Print | Digg this | Add to del.icio.us
MANILA, Philippines - The late Eugenio Lopez Sr had written three letters to former President Ferdinand Marcos offering the sale of their shares in the Manila Electric Company during the Martial Law years.

The letters, which were included in the book "Let the Marcos Truth Prevail" that was published by the Marcoses, would belie claims the Marcos administration sequested Meralco from the Lopez family.

In GMA's Saksi, Maki Pulido reported that in the first letter, dated February 1973, Lopez Sr informed the late dictator of their plans to sell their Meralco share to Meralco foundation, which was composed of Meralco's employees and customers.

An excerpt of the said letter read: "... would like to offer sale of our holdings to a cooperative composed of Meralco employees, customers and the general public that could be organized with the assistance of the government."

In the second letter, Lopez Sr reportedly proposed a financial scheme that will transfer to the Foundation the more than P100 million debt incurred by the Lopezes from banks.

Part of the second letter read: "It is proposed that the Foundation's note to the banks be predicated on amortization over a period of 8 years beginning with the third year following consumation of hte sale..."

The third letter reportedly contained Lopez Sr's detailed account of the sale as well as his request for assistance from Marcos.

An excerpt of the letter read: "I hope Mr President, that you could spare some time from your more pressing duties of State to help us and to give this proposal your sympathetic consideration."

The sale of Meralco's share by the Lopezes pushed through in 1978 at the price of more than P800 million.

However, when Marcoses were driven out of Malacañang as a result of the People Power Revolution in 1986, the Lopezes were able to regain their shares without paying a single centavo.

Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, who was then Defense minister, expressed incredulity at this turn of events involving the country's largest power distributor.

"I thought it would've been better if they allowed the Sandiganbayan to decide the issue of whether this (Meralco) is ill-gotten weath or not," he said.

For his part, Sen. Joker Arroyo, who was executive secretary during the Aquino administration, admitted that Meralco was returned to the Lopezes without formal written documents because it was a sequested asset.

But according to Sen. Benigno Aquino III, son of former President Corazon Aquino, it was the Supreme Court that ruled in 1991 to return to the Lopezes their Meralco shares that were not paid by Meralco Foundation.

He also urged Enrile to bring the issue to the courts if he has questions about it.

"He (Enrile) is a member of the government and if he feels that my mother did something wrong, then the courts are open," he said.

GMA's news team tried to get the Lopez family's comment but the family refused to issue one.

In an open letter to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, however, Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Holdings Corporation, claimed that Eugenio Lopez Sr was forced to sell their Meralco shares due to pressure from the Marcos family.

"Given the Martial Law situation and the fact that the son of Lopez Sr, Eugenio "Geny" Lopez Jr, was at the time rotting in jail, can there be any doubt that it is a transaction done under duress?" the letter said. - GMANews.TV

Fried in their own fat
To The Point : Emil Jurado

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may14_2008

THE joint Senate-House of Representatives inquiry into the Meralco brouhaha is one congressional investigation that could be salutary and beneficial to millions of Meralco consumers. All these years, the Lopezes have been doing monkey business, frying consumers in their own fat and then laughing themselves all the way to the bank.
Consider these eye openers during the hours-long joint inquiry into Meralco with the end in view of lowering power and electricity rates: First, there were “sweetheart” deals in the purchase of the Lopez-managed Meralco with Independent Power Producers which are owned by the Lopezes.
In the process, the Lopez-owned power producers are reaping billions of pesos, all at the expense of consumers.
* * *
Santa Banana, no matter how the Lopezes try to disguise this, we are all being fried in our lard by the Lopezes when they do all these at the expense of consumers. There is no reason why Meralco rates are much higher than any rates in other places nationwide.
Then, there are onerous “system losses” passed on to consumers. Meralco justified this as a common practice. Oh yeah? Not when the amount passed on to consumers is exorbitant. And take note of this hanky-panky uncovered by Senator Juan Ponce Enrile: Meralco admitted that no less than P51 million that Meralco itself and its utilities are using are also passed on to consumers.
The worst part is that Meralco itself buys from Lopez-owned suppliers purchase of electric meters, electric lines, electric poles and generators, and so forth and so on.
There are more questions to ask: Where do consumers’ deposits go?
I believe the demand of Government Service Insurance System president and chief executive Winston Garcia for Meralco to open its books to the public could only open a can of worms. And the biggest worm is this “pass-on” anomaly by Meralco.
* * *
It’s definitely worth considering, the plan of the GSIS head for government to break up management into two like what Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System did, allowing the Lopez-owned Maynilad Water to control the eastern portion of Metro Manila.
The bottom line to all these is that the Lopezes have long bled the millions of Meralco consumers. It’s time the government step in.
My gulay, try to delay payment of your monthly electric bill, and almost immediately, you get a notice of disconnection. The Lopez-controlled Meralco is not content frying us in our lard. How long will we, consumers, bear its arrogance?
* * *
Trademark theft and copyright infringement will remain one of the government’s perennial headaches if the loopholes, lapses and laxity in giving out certificates of registration at the Intellectual Property Office are not stopped. How ironic, considering that it is the umbrella agency mandated to check, if not eliminate altogether, the high incidence of piracy now pestering the country.
For instance, there’s this mystery shrouding the approval of a registration certificate of a Chinese national and his Filipino wife to market a counterfeit brand of Japanese shovel in the local market. This despite the fact that the product’s trademark (Tombo) has already been registered and listed with the Department of Trade and Industry since 1960 by the family of Filipino businessman Philip Coling, and has been religiously updated since.
Santa Banana, how can this happen if not for the incompetence or outright collusion of some IPO people?
Plus, records reveal that the couple has already been arrested after being caught red-handed possessing 10 truckloads of the fake goods worth more than P3 million in their warehouse in Quezon City and Valenzuela. The raids were conducted sometime in February this year by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the National Police.
Criminal complaints have been filed against the couple but this Chinese national, who actually spent several days in jail, was released after posting bail.
I wrote about this case in my column last April 8. I thought this couple would stop. I was mistaken.
My gulay, the sad part about the whole surreal thing is that, because of the fraudulent approval in January 2008 of the importers’ registration, the Intellectual Property Office has legitimized the marketing of fake, Chinese-made Tombo shovels in the country.
In effect, this will edge out the Coling family as the legitimate distributor of the genuine product, thanks to the inefficiency, if not outright connivance of some IPO personnel with the counterfeiters. The Colings have built up the Tombo shovel business since 1960 and has treated it as some sort of a family heirloom that has been passed on from generation to generation.
In my earlier column, I suggested that in instances like these, the counterfeiters should be made to dig a hole using their fake shovels and throw them into it and cover it up. If that won’t each them a lesson, nothing will.
It also appears as a clear case of bureaucratic foot dragging, is that the Tombo case has been pending with IPO since it was first brought to the attention of IPO lawyers.
According to my information, the IPO appears to be stalling the petition for cancellation of the original Tombo trademark holders. In a recent hearing, all the pieces of evidence presented by the Colings were reportedly thrown out of the window. Worse, the IPO people have not set a date for the next hearing.
On the basis of this case alone, it would seem that the IPO has now become the Intellectual “Piracy” office. Santa Banana, no wonder things are not moving over there. Does this prove that crime does pay?

-------------------------------------------------


Congress moves to plug Meralco’s cost loopholes
By Christine F. Herrera
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=news1_may14_2008

CONGRESS can revoke the franchise of the Manila Electric Co. for violating the “just and reasonable” or the “least cost” principles by passing its costs and bad debts to consumers through excessively high rates, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said yesterday.

“Meralco operates under a franchise, meaning a right conferred by the government to engage in a specific business, including the rights necessary for public utility companies to carry on their operations,” said Santiago, co-chairman of the Joint Congressional Power Commission.

Santiago also said Meralco’s top executives faced criminal charges for allegedly conspiring with the Energy Regulatory Commission and the National Power Corp. to impose higher rates detrimental to the consuming public.
At a panel hearing earlier on Monday, company president Jesus Francisco admitted that Meralco passes on some P500 million a year of its own power consumption to consumers as part of its “systems losses.”

The panel also learned of a plan to pass on bad debts incurred by Meralco and the National Power Corp. to consumers.
“The president of Meralco has admitted that the systems losses are not the fault of the consumers or not due to technicalities or pilferage but from their usage of electricity and bad debts,” invoking the pass through provisions,” Santiago said.

Santiago also blamed the Energy Regulatory Commission for being remiss in regulating Meralco and Napocor, and for failing to limit the amount Meralco could charge to systems losses.
The cap on systems losses was 9.5 percent, but this was abolished by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act that gave the commission the power to set the new limit, though the agency failed to do it, she said.
But Santiago said the commission’s laxity did not make it legal for Meralco to bloat its systems-loss claims.
The Palace yesterday urged lawmakers to plug loopholes in the law that allow power companies such as Meralco to pass their operating costs on to consumers as systems losses.

The President has complained that while the new energy law aims to reduce the cost of electricity, power rates remain high for consumers.
At the hearing Monday, Santiago ordered the commission to immediately set limits on systems losses.

She also ordered the commission to dismiss outright the Meralco petition, backed by Napocor, to pass on to consumers some P66 billion in bad debts incurred by the two companies.
“The consuming public had nothing to do with these debts,” Santiago said. “We were not consulted on acquiring those debts.”

Santiago also said the power commission did not see any problem with Meralco being broken up into two entities as proposed by Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Winston Garcia.
“There’s no problem with that, we already have a model,” she said, referring to the water utility.

The senator said on questioning during the hearing Monday that “Meralco can be faulted for management inefficiency.”
Meralco did not comply with the law, which says the consuming public must get electricity at the least cost possible, she added.
The penalties for management abuse could be legislative, corporate and criminal, she said.
“The legislative remedy provided by the Constitution is for Congress to amend or repeal the Meralco franchise, as required by the common good,” she said.
At a hearing in the House of Representatives, lawmakers yesterday said Meralco should not be charging value-added taxes on its systems losses, which are incorporated into the power bills of its four million customers.
The congressmen also attacked the Bureau of Internal Revenue for saying that it was legal for Meralco to pass on its systems losses to its customers.
Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing said the implementing rules and regulations were “a great departure” from the intent of the new energy law.
“Since when did the [implementing rules and regulations] become more powerful than the law itself?” he said. With Romie A. Evangelista and Roy Pelovello

----------------------------------------------------------------

Letters prove Marcos didn't sequester Meralco from Lopezes
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/95241/Letters-prove-Marcos-didnt-sequester-
Letters prove Marcos didn't sequester Meralco from Lopezes
05/15/2008 | 12:07 AM
Email this | Email the Editor | Print | Digg this | Add to del.icio.us
MANILA, Philippines - The late Eugenio Lopez Sr had written three letters to former President Ferdinand Marcos offering the sale of their shares in the Manila Electric Company during the Martial Law years.

The letters, which were included in the book "Let the Marcos Truth Prevail" that was published by the Marcoses, would belie claims the Marcos administration sequested Meralco from the Lopez family.

In GMA's Saksi, Maki Pulido reported that in the first letter, dated February 1973, Lopez Sr informed the late dictator of their plans to sell their Meralco share to Meralco foundation, which was composed of Meralco's employees and customers.

An excerpt of the said letter read: "... would like to offer sale of our holdings to a cooperative composed of Meralco employees, customers and the general public that could be organized with the assistance of the government."

In the second letter, Lopez Sr reportedly proposed a financial scheme that will transfer to the Foundation the more than P100 million debt incurred by the Lopezes from banks.

Part of the second letter read: "It is proposed that the Foundation's note to the banks be predicated on amortization over a period of 8 years beginning with the third year following consumation of hte sale..."

The third letter reportedly contained Lopez Sr's detailed account of the sale as well as his request for assistance from Marcos.

An excerpt of the letter read: "I hope Mr President, that you could spare some time from your more pressing duties of State to help us and to give this proposal your sympathetic consideration."

The sale of Meralco's share by the Lopezes pushed through in 1978 at the price of more than P800 million.

However, when Marcoses were driven out of Malacañang as a result of the People Power Revolution in 1986, the Lopezes were able to regain their shares without paying a single centavo.

Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, who was then Defense minister, expressed incredulity at this turn of events involving the country's largest power distributor.

"I thought it would've been better if they allowed the Sandiganbayan to decide the issue of whether this (Meralco) is ill-gotten weath or not," he said.

For his part, Sen. Joker Arroyo, who was executive secretary during the Aquino administration, admitted that Meralco was returned to the Lopezes without formal written documents because it was a sequested asset.

But according to Sen. Benigno Aquino III, son of former President Corazon Aquino, it was the Supreme Court that ruled in 1991 to return to the Lopezes their Meralco shares that were not paid by Meralco Foundation.

He also urged Enrile to bring the issue to the courts if he has questions about it.

"He (Enrile) is a member of the government and if he feels that my mother did something wrong, then the courts are open," he said.

GMA's news team tried to get the Lopez family's comment but the family refused to issue one.

In an open letter to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, however, Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Holdings Corporation, claimed that Eugenio Lopez Sr was forced to sell their Meralco shares due to pressure from the Marcos family.

"Given the Martial Law situation and the fact that the son of Lopez Sr, Eugenio "Geny" Lopez Jr, was at the time rotting in jail, can there be any doubt that it is a transaction done under duress?" the letter said. - GMANews.TV

Now you know why I think the AIM Business School also exists so that the Syndicate Family could train their future managers based on their own skewed business model that is MONOPOLY.

I think I agree with the GSIS President Winston Garcia's proposal to divide Meralco into two, like the successful MWSS-NAWASA model. The MWSS-NAWASA Model is the best way to destroy Monopoly that is responsible for charging high prices to the consumers.



VIRTUAL REALITY
By Tony Lopez
The Lopez family’s business model


In 2007, the Lopez family of First Philippine Holdings Corp., Meralco and ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. determined that profits are to be generated and their wealth enhanced through one simple strategy—heavy investment in power and tolllways.
Electricity and infrastructure are two of the major crippling inadequacies in the Philippines, two factors why investments cannot be greater nor more robust than they already are. You meet the need for electricity and infra and you make money.
Thus, the Lopezes increased their holdings in Meralco, vastly expanded their portfolio of power plants, and acquired more tollways contracts.
However, the Lopezes didn’t reckon early enough with one imponderable: A hostile administration like Gloria Arroyo’s and a nosy and brashy investor like President Winston Garcia of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). True, there was ABS-CBN to soften the tandem. But what do you do when an official’s public image has been pummeled to such low point it can go nowhere but up?
Now, the Lopezes find themselves in a dilemma. Do they surrender or shoot it out till the last man standing?
In 2007, the Lopezes became the single biggest stockholder of Meralco, the country’s largest electricity distributor and a monopoly. Through First Holdings, the Lopezes increased their holdings to 33.4 percent from 17.7 percent. They bought the 6.6 percent of the Meralco Pension Fund for P8.3 billion, and the 9.1 percent of the Spanish investor Union Fenosa for $250 million (P10.5 billion at P42 to $1). Valued in 2007 at P18.8 billion, the 15.7 percent is now worth below P12 billion.
Why Meralco? The family has always considered Meralco their crown jewel, the proud symbol of their economic might and political influence. While 33.4 percent seems like a minority, it has veto power because you need a 70 percent vote to buy and sell assets in a company. First Holdings also has 30 percent of Panay Electric, the fifth largest electricity distributor.
Meanwhile, the state Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) is, on paper, an independent body. Between the public consumers and the private owners of Meralco, ERC should take the side of the public.
Last year, the ERC decided to be friendly to Meralco. It agreed to a new system of fixing electricity prices called performance-based rate setting (PBR) mechanism beginning mid-2008. In simple terms, PBR assured Meralco yearly rate increases guaranteeing the utility handsome profits or a return of 12.8 centavos for every P100 of average cost of capital. This is significantly higher than the 8 percent to 12 percent return under the old return on rate base (RORB), the practice for 80 years. Also, under RORB, rate increases were subjected to public hearings which could be high profile and politically unpalatable.
PBR is based on Meralco’s forecast of electricity demand, operational expenses and capital expenditures. ERC then prescribes distribution rates which increase annually over a four-year period, from 2008 to 2011, to cover cost increases due to inflation and the peso depreciation. In effect, Meralco could single-handedly determine what it could charge the public its so-called distribution rate. Imagine there is a price control body and you (the regulated) determine the ceilings set by that agency. In terms of profit potential, that’s a mind-boggling sweetheart deal. If the ERC takes time to decide the PBR rate, the delay will be charged to future rate increases. There is a built-in penalty for inefficiency and the consumer pays for it.
With increased profits from Meralco, the Lopezes could pour excess cash into other businesses, like Rockwell, to generate even more profits.
At the same time, the Lopezes increased ten-fold their holdings in power generation. Through First Gen, owned 66.2 percent by First Holdings, the Lopez family is the largest Filipino independent power producer with an installed capacity of 2,582.4 megawatts or 16 percent of the country’s generating capacity. Of every 100 megawatts, 6.25 mw is provided by the Lopezes.
The two biggest Lopez power plants are the 1,000-megawatt Santa Rita and the 500-megawatt San Lorenzo which are on their eighth and sixth year, respectively, of their 25-year purchase power agreement with Meralco. The plants rely on natural gas piped in from the Malampaya gas field in Palawan.
In December, the family bought a 40-percent economic interest and 60-percent voting rights in the state-owned geothermal company PNOC Energy Development Corp. It paid P58 billion, three times EDC’s IPO price. EDC is the Philippines’ largest and the country the second biggest geothermal producer in the world. It has seven geothermal steam fields and an installed capacity of 1,198 mw.
First Holdings will manage the 94-kilometer Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway, Phase 2 of the Manila North tollways to connect the 84-kilometer NLEX to C-5 and Port Area, part of the C6 Expressway, and the 88-kilometer Tarlac-La Union expressway.
In all these deals, the Lopez family will have to talk turkey with the government. In the meantime, with little capital, the family has overborrowed. Much of their liabilities carry government guarantees or invested with state generosity.
biznewsasia@gmail.com

‘Consumers paid for ghost Meralco supply’

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/05152008/headlines04.html
By Fernan Marasigan
Reporter

THE Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is in for yet another controversy after a proadministration legislator revealed an alleged shady transaction between Meralco with another Lopez-owned company, with consumers again taking the burden.
In a privileged speech, Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino Rep. Luis Villafuerte of Camarines Sur said ghost deliveries between the Lopez-owned First Gas and Meralco resulted in blatant overcharging of consumers.
“On such a grand scale that should stagger the minds of consumers, electricity [was] delivered by Meralco at a price that included costs of power that Meralco paid to First Gas when the latter did not deliver the power that Meralco paid for, but the cost of which Meralco passed on to consumers,” Villafuerte said.
Villafuerte traced First Gas’s origins: incorporated on November 24, 1994, First Gas entered into an EPC contract with Siemens Consortium for the turnkey construction of a 1,000- megawatt plant for $479 million. He added that as of December 31, 2000, First Gas had a paid-up capital of P8.07 billion.
Full completion and commercial operation of the 1,000 megawatt (MW) plant to be contracted by Siemens for First Gas was delayed, such that the First Gas Santa Rita plant only delivered to Meralco an average of 138 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) a month from July to November 2000, said Villafuerte.
“This is the equivalent of only 212.9 mW in capacity, or an equivalent output of less than 300mW.
“Notwithstanding the fact that First Gas had only a demonstrated capacity for the period from July to November 2000 rounded to about 300 mW, Meralco willingly paid First Gas the capacity fees and fixed fees equivalent to 1,000 mW,” Villafuerte added.
He said that from December 2000 to November 2001, Meralco paid First Gas P12.99 billion or an average of P1.08 billion, a month, even if First Gas did not deliver to Meralco the equivalent kilowatt-hour power that Meralco paid for.
“Meralco charged these P12.99-billion payments for undelivered power to Meralco consumers as part of PPA [power purchase adjustment] for said period, from December 2000 to November 2001,” Villafuerte said.
“Even as Meralco paid First Gas for undelivered power, Meralco had to buy from the National Power Corp. supposedly the difference that First Gas did not deliver but got paid for and yet, Meralco’s own records show that its purchases of power from Napocor during the 12-month period only increased an average of less than 300 mW. In terms of energy, it was only 162.26-million-kWh-per-month average,” he added.
“What was the result? From July to December 2000, First Gas had a net-income after tax of P2.572 billion, while for the year 2001, First Gas had a P4.904-billion net-income after tax, or a total of P7.476 billion. Of the total P7.476-billion net income for the 18-month period, First Gas declared P6.143 cash dividends.”
Villafuerte said that for 2002, First Gas obtained a net-income after tax of P4.665 billion.
“Hence, the net income after tax of First Gas for the first 30 months of operation from July 2000 to December 31, 2002, was P12.14 billion. In 2002 First Gas again declared a cash dividend of P5.30 billion,” Villafuerte said.
Considering that First Gas invested only P8.07 billion, this means that after 30 months of operations, it got back in cash dividends P11.448 billion, the solon noted.
“The Lopez Group as stockholders of First Gas did not only obtain a return of 100 percent of its original paid-up capital, but an extra of P3.372 billion to boot,” he noted.
But the worst side of these “highly scandalous transactions,” Villafuerte said, is that what Meralco paid for in ghost deliveries of First Gas that were passed on to Meralco consumers.
“This is one of the evils of cross-ownership between a public utility power distributor and a power generator, a compelling reason why the Epira [Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001] should be amended to restrict and regulate cross-ownership between power generators such as First Gas and power distributors such as Meralco,” Villafuerte said.
In the same speech, Villafuerte also scored the settlement agreement forged between Meralco and Napocor to simply pass on to the public more than P50 billion in debts owed each other. The Napocor claims Meralco owed it money for all the time it did not buy power generated by Napocor despite an agreement. Meralco had been accused of buying from its own independent power producers (IPPs) even at peak rates, in what critics describe as a brazen self-dealing benefiting only the common owners of Meralco and the IPPs.
Villafuerte assailed the Energy Regulatory Commission for not outrightly rejecting the petition, considering that it is inimical to public interest.
“Again what is stultifying about this messy deal is that once again, electric consumers of Meralco are being proposed to assume, through billing charges, the obligation of Meralco to Napocor,” Villafuerte said.
Irate customers can file a class suit against the Manila Electric Co. following the latter’s admission
that the former have been made to shoulder its systems losses, among others, according to Chief Presidential Counsel Sergio Apostol.
Asked to comment on Meralco’s admission before the joint congressional inquiry on allegations of overcharging against the public-utility company, Apostol said: “Somebody has to file a case against Meralco. This is allowed by law.” He noted that Meralco has “already lost in two cases before the Supreme Court.”
Deputy Presidential Spokesman Lorelei Fajardo said in a statement that “Meralco may have to seriously consider its position on the matter,” referring to the P500 million that consumers were made to pay in terms of Meralco’s systems losses and its own electricity bills.
Fajardo added that this is “now a matter for the legislators to seriously consider in their consideration to amend the Epira.”
Commenting on Meralco’s full-page advertisements published in major newspapers, the spokesman of the Government Service Insurance System assailed Meralco for claiming that GSIS president Winston Garcia had stood as legal counsel for Visayan Electric Co. The Veco is Meralco’s counterpart in Cebu whose rates, the GSIS chief executive had exposed, are lower than those charged by the Lopez family-owned electric company.
“Winston Garcia is not and was never a lawyer of Veco. Neither was he ever connected with the Garcia law office allegedly lawyering for Veco,” Elamparo said in a press statement.
“The Garcia law office belongs to the other Garcias of Cebu—the family of lawyer Sonny Garcia, and GSIS president Garcia had nothing to do with it,” she added.
The National Labor Union (NLU) at the same time accused Meralco of taking away from the table of poor Filipinos the equivalent of some 31.5 million kilos of government rice each year.
“This is corporate greed at its worst because Meralco fattens itself by snatching food away from the mouth of the poor and the malnourished, especially children and the elderly,” said the NLU through its president Dave Diwa.

This should be on top of the agenda. Bump.

Lower the Electric Bill Now !!!!!!

Unworthy of our trust

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=editorial_may14_2008
We learned with dismay this week that consumers in Metro Manila have been shouldering the Manila Electric Co.’s costs of doing business—including its own power consumption of 71 million kilowatt hours, or about P500 million a year.
This revelation comes to us by way of answers given by Meralco’s president, Jesus Francisco, at a long overdue congressional investigation into the high power rates.
Under questioning, Francisco admitted that such a charge was tucked under the category of “system losses,” a cost, he hastens to add, that the Energy Regulatory Commission allows it to pass on to consumers.
During the hearing, we also learned that:
• Meralco buys a good portion of its power from two sister companies, which charge more than the National Power Corp. does. These high costs are again passed on to consumers, while the Lopez-owned companies pocket the higher profits.
• Eight top executives of the power distribution company will be paid P97 million this year, while the officers and directors as a group will get P170 million. This seems rather extravagant in a company that has 4,000 supervisors for 3,000 rank-and-file workers.
• Meralco also wants its customers to shoulder its bad debts worth P14 billion.
Is it really any wonder our power rates are so high?
Despite these revelations at the congressional hearing, the power company had the temerity to issue a statement saying it has fulfilled its mandate to bring power to consumers at the lowest possible cost. It is the height of arrogance that this company, which has been bleeding consumers for so long, believes the public will still accept its assurances on its say-so.
We should disabuse Meralco’s owners and management of such a notion. After all, we know the kind of scruples that were involved when this same company tried to pass off its income taxes to its hapless customers, before the Supreme Court told them it was illegal.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/May/15/topstory3.htm

PNOC EDC says power needed to end brownouts
BY GILBERT BAYORAN

MANILA – A senior official of the state-owned Philippine National Oil Company Energy Development Corp. yesterday warned that intermittent brown-outs in Negros may continue unless immediate power supply can be tapped.

Rey Medrano, Corporate Social Responsibility department chief of the PNOC-EDC, said the entry into the 169-hectare buffer zone of the Mt. Kanlaon National Park, to tap additional geothermal power, will help alleviate the power shortage, which is now being experienced, not only in Negros, but also in other areas of Western Visayas.

The Diocese of Bacolod, environmentalist and militant groups, are vehemently opposing the entry of the state-owned power firm to the park, claiming the damage to be brought by drilling operations will be irreplaceable.

Medrano said their performance at the Mt. Apo geothermal project in Mindanao speaks for itself, and shows how they had restored the biodiversity affected by their operations.

The PNOC drilling operations within the 169-hectare buffer zone, which was authorized by the law, was supposed to start in November last year and expected to be completed in 2010, he said.

Medrano said they are hopeful that the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental will act on their request, for concurrence in their entry to the buffer zone that has already been approved by the Departments of Energy as well as Environment and Natural Resources.

Beyond the buffer zone, he added, they are barred from entering the park.

Medrano said the option presented by the PNOC for a directional drilling is not feasible as materials needed are not available.

He said they are more than willing to form a partnership with environmentalist groups and other sectors of society, in the preservation of Mt. Kanlaon and its surrounding areas.*GPB

Niloloko talaga tayo ng Meralco dahil sa sinasabi nilang ipinapasang system losses. Ang katwiran ng Meralco ay authorized daw ito ng batas. Pero mayroong limitasyon ang batas. Ang masama mukhang hindi sila sumusunod sa limitasyon ng batas dahil ang laki laki ng nakokolekta nilang kita mula sa system losses pa lang.

Ang ABS-CBN naman bumabanat sa administrasyon para malimutan ng tao ang tungkol sa mahal na singil ng kuryente. Mas importante kaya na mapababa ang singil ng kuryente kaysa ang kung anu-anong intriga diyan.

Niloloko talaga tayo ng Meralco dahil sa sinasabi nilang ipinapasang system losses. Ang katwiran ng Meralco ay authorized daw ito ng batas. Pero mayroong limitasyon ang batas. Ang masama mukhang hindi sila sumusunod sa limitasyon ng batas dahil ang laki laki ng nakokolekta nilang kita mula sa system losses pa lang.

Ang ABS-CBN naman bumabanat sa administrasyon para malimutan ng tao ang tungkol sa mahal na singil ng kuryente. Mas importante kaya na mapababa ang singil ng kuryente kaysa ang kung anu-anong intriga diyan.

Biased nga eh...

Watch out People. The Lopeze's ABS-CBN is trying to divert the people's attention on the massive fraud that they've had been committing affecting millions of Metro Manila Consumers. They are trying to cover up their Greedy Activities. They are the kind of business entity that perpuates Corporate Corruption by swindling the consumers with electric bill fee. The Meralco Scandal is Bigger than the Scrapped ZTE-NBN deal.

DO NOT STOP UNTIL MERALCO STOPs SWINDLING US.

SINDIKATO TALAGA ANG MERALCO.

Who owns Meralco?
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may15_2008

A series of full-page advertisements, replete with claims of “tongpats” and “bukol” (mark-up and overprice), terms made popular during the Senate inquiry into the botched national broadband network deal with ZTE, has been appearing in newspapers in an attempt to exculpate Manila Electric Co. from claims that it’s guilty of hoodwinking millions of consumers.
Meralco executives deny that these ads came from them. Oh yeah, tell that to the Marines. These placements are all for the benefit of the Lopez-controlled Meralco.
Those full-page ads are an apparent attempt to shift the blame to National Power Corp. But while Napocor is not at all lily-white and faultless, the people won’t buy what the Lopezes are peddling to exculpate themselves.
* * *
What is important is the bottom line to all these. Meralco has been passing on to us consumers almost everything they have to pay—“system losses” (pilferages and what-have-you), bad debts and even its own electrical consumption to over P500 million, (not P51 million as I mistakenly wrote in an earlier column); exorbitant compensation for its executives and directors; and a lot more.

Meralco is also charging deposits for electricity connection which are never refunded. All these are passed on to consumers, making its rates the highest in the country. All those full-page ads in newspapers can only exacerbate Meralco’s sins to the public.
Santa Banana, I would not be surprised if those expensive full-paid ads are passed on to us, consumers. That would be adding insult to injury!
* * *
A very interesting question has cropped up in connection with the Lopez-controlled Meralco brouhaha: Who really owns Meralco—the Lopezes or the government?

This question was brought to the fore by Senator Juan Ponce Enrile after he came out with a yellowish typewritten letter of the late Lopez patriach, Eugenio Lopez Sr., sent to then President Ferdinand Marcos way back in 1973. If we are to go by the letter’s contents, brothers Eugenio and Fernando Lopez wanted to be bailed out of Meralco’s big debts here and abroad. The debts amounted to over P101 million in principal and interest, and already way past due.

According to records, Meralco was then indebted to 16 banks, including government banks. The amount at the time was considered a fortune. Reports also said that the Lopezes owed foreign banks some $476 million.
In that letter, the Lopez patriarch offered to sell Meralco to a cooperative composed of its employees, end-users and the government. A P200-million loan was secured to the new owners under the umbrella of Meralco Foundation, from the Development Bank of the Philippines.
* * *
Note this: Enrile said that the customers had participation certificates that entitled them to Meralco dividends, but when former President Cory Aquino assumed power in 1986, she handed Meralco on a silver platter to the Lopezes. The certificates were subsequently forgotten.
Just how Cory did it, verbally at that, is baffling. This in spite of so many others crying out for justice for the oppression they experienced under the Marcos regime.

Why Cory gave priority to the Lopezes is a mystery up to now.
Nonetheless, back to the question of who really owns Meralco—the Lopezes or the government. It is a question that cries for an answer.

By the way, everything Enrile said could be found in a notarized statement of former Meralco officials like the late Emilio Abello and Senen Gabaldon in a statement dated Feb. 27, 1975.

As for claims that the Lopezes signed that offer for a bailout by Marcos under duress, a claim made by Senator Joker Arroyo, the fact was that the Lopezes then were hard put in paying their local and foreign debts.

And this led to the takeover of Meralco by Kokoy Romualdez, brother-in-law of Marcos. Again, since Cory handed over Meralco on a silver platter to the Lopezes verbally, without any documentation after the 1986 People Power Revolution, the question remains— is Meralco owned by the government or the Lopezes?

In the wake of the mismanagement of Meralco by the Lopezes, perhaps it’s time for the government to assert what is due to the people. Meralco is indeed still government-owned since it was government under Marcos that covered up for the heavy debts of the Lopezes.

As for claims that the Lopezes were victims of Martial Law, there are incontrovertible facts that Eugenio Lopez Jr. and former Senator Serge Osmeña were jailed because of their alleged involvement on an assassination plot on Marcos, not because of Meralco as many perceived.
My gulay, the fact is that the Lopezes were actually beneficiaries of Martial Law, not victims. The Meralco bailout clearly illustrates this!
* * *
If you haven’t noticed it yet, there’s a clear attempt on the part of the opposition and possibly the Lopezes using my favorite tabloid-national broadsheet and the Lopez-owned ABS-CBN (naturally) in reviving the national broadband deal which is already in comatose. There is now a claim that a new witness who can directly link the President and the First Gentleman to the deal would be surfacing.

The claim is that the President had a secret and even surreptitiously arranged a meeting with ZTE executives in Shenzen out of Hong Kong. The tabloid-national broadsheet did not say what was discussed. But, the insinuation is there—the President and her husband are involved in the ZTE-NBN deal.

I don’t know whether this attempt of an inveterate Arroyo critic and attention-getter like Iloilo Vice Gov. Rolex Suplico will fly. It’s another one of those things that can’t be verified, much less proven. But, as I said, this is a clear attempt to cover up the Meralco rate issue, which by any standard is a gut issue insofar as the public is concerned.

This development is tragic for us Filipino being victimized by Meralco’s reign of greed. Here we are, crying for lower power and electric rates, and here is the opposition and perhaps Lopez cohorts trying to revive a clinically dead issue that is the ZTE deal.
I don’t know, too, if the public will bite this. What is tragic is that a tabloid-national broadsheet is allowing itself to be used. As for ABS-CBN, it knows where its bread is buttered.
* * *
“Aksyon agad.” That’s how Finance Secretary Gary Teves did after I informed him of a report that some Customs district collectors that exceeded their collection targets had started distributing compensation rewards under the Attrition Law granting rewards to those who exceeded their targets in revenue collection. The report I got was that some district collectors started giving rewards of as high as over a hundred thousand pesos even to police security and janitors. And this was being complained by other district collectors.
Teves immediately went to Customs and in a meeting with Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales the district collectors stopped the distribution of rewards. Teves gave instruction to Morales that there should be equitable distribution of rewards and given only to those who contributed to high Customs collections, and not to janitors and security people.
The fast action by Teves aborted a big scandal that could have worsened public perception on a seemingly graft ridden agency. I covered Customs for years when I was still business editor for the defunct Philippines Herald. I know that it’s a 24-hour cat-and-mouse game over there. If some Customs people can get away with murder, they will do it.

Watch out People. The Lopeze's ABS-CBN is trying to divert the people's attention on the massive fraud that they've had been committing affecting millions of Metro Manila Consumers. They are trying to cover up their Greedy Activities. They are the kind of business entity that perpuates Corporate Corruption by swindling the consumers with electric bill fee. The Meralco Scandal is Bigger than the Scrapped ZTE-NBN deal.

DO NOT STOP UNTIL MERALCO STOPs SWINDLING US.

SINDIKATO TALAGA ANG MERALCO.

Well, at least somebody has to also nationalize our issues in Iloilo too...
PECO (Panay Electric Company) and PPC (Panay Power) has been charging the Ilonggo consumers in the city, one of the most expensive electricity bills in the Philippines. Generation charge is about P8-P9 per kilowatt hour plus distribution.

It is owned by the Cachos although the Lopezes also owns some part of it, especially PPC.

Why a sudden focus on the lopezes, the high cost of electrity issue has been there ever since and and the gov't is keeping a blind eye on it but why now suddenly the gov't seems really enthusiastic on pinning their fingers to the lopezes. isn't the reason clear as crystal here, POLITICS?

I think we should also say

DO NOT STOP UNTIL THE GOV"T STOPS MAKING FILIPINOS AS THEIR MILKING COWS!

What is happening with meralco and the gov't is obvious, politics! Election is near and Lopezes have their own bet already. And now the go'vt is pressuring them. I am not saying that the lopezes are innocent but i just hope the gov't would not give a very bad image to the business community in the country. What about the gov't, how much fund which was supposed to go to the benefits of its citizens are now unaccounted. Are their hands clean? How about the mafias and sindicates in the napocor? Why not deal the issue with napocor at the same time?

And not only Manila is suffering from expensive bills, iloilo also is paying 10 to 12 pesps/kw hr

Actually, i like this happening now, it's like a fierce battle between a croc and an alligator. Hopefully the dirt on their closets will be made public and the Filipinos will be the beneficiary.

Hope Filipinos would be smart enough and would not allow themselves to be used again and again by either sides, sindicates from meralco or napocor/gov't.

^^ Simple as it is...POLITICA ETERNIDAD...
The Lopezes may not be there at politics per se but their powers extend thru their businesses.

Well, anyway both of them (like most [or maybe all]) have skeletons in their closets.

Either way, both of them are already throwing mud...ZTE and Meralco. I hope the Filipinos learn their lessons in the process.

Maybe a reform in the electric utility sector would help solve some of the perennial problems because at the end of the day, it is still us who will be affected. Our electricity rates are quite uncompetitive in the region as what they say...I'm just wondering how much does a kilowatt per hour cost in our neighbors in ASEAN?

http://www.bworld.com.ph/BW051608/content.php?id=075

More talks sought on looming Visayas power crisis
BusinessWorld
May 16, 2008

BACOLOD CITY — Plans to build more coal-fired plants and tap more geothermal sources might be put on hold as Catholic church leaders and nongovernment organizations remain firm in opposing these moves to solve the energy shortage in the Visayas.

Bishop Vicente Navarra, however, is willing to meet again with Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes on May 19 to discuss the church-led opposition and the Department of Energy’s plans and mitigating measures. Mr. Reyes sought an audience with the bishop before a briefing last week on the power situation.

"My position is still the same," Bishop Navarra said on the Church-led opposition. If the government, however, pushes through with its plan to allow the construction of more coal-fired plants and tap more geothermal resources, he said "we cannot do anything about it."

The Diocese of Bacolod, along with environmental groups, believe that allowing PNOC-EDC to conduct further exploration inside the Kanlaon park will result in the destruction of 7,800 trees amounting to more than P58 billion and pose a danger to nature.

At present, PNOC-EDC’s Northern Negros Geothermal Power Plant in Bago City and Murcia town produces only about five megawatts, just a little over 10% of its maximum generating capacity of 49 megawatts (MW).

The facility, which was commissioned in February 2007, is intended to generate 49 MW through a geothermal service contract with the DoE issued in 1994, covering 4,310.84 hectares, including the 169-hectare buffer zone.

In his letter last month to Negros Occidental Gov. Isidro Zayco, Mr. Reyes endorsed the use of the Kanlaon park’s buffer zone by the PNOC-EDC.

"Although PNOC-EDC exerted its best effort to explore outside the buffer zone, the production area can only provide a maximum of 17 MW thus, for optimum operation, development of the buffer zone is necessary as the area is expected to generate 20 MW," Mr. Reyes wrote.

In a briefing last week, Energy officials said Cebu, Negros and Panay will need 261 MW until 2010 to prevent shortage, or 159 MW for Negros, 88 MW for Panay and 14 MW for Cebu.

But the opposition here is not only confined to the plans of PNOC-EDC. The Church, with militant and environmental groups, also frowns on electric cooperatives in Negros Occidental that source power supply from coal-fired power plants.

Protests have been mounted against the power supply contract of the Central Negros Electric Cooperative and the Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative with the KEPCO-SPC Corp., which is building two 100-MW coal-fired plants in Cebu.

Both the Bacolod City Council and the La Carlota City Government have filed interventions to the applications of the two cooperatives before the Energy Regulatory Commission for approval of their supply contracts with KEPCO-SPC.

Panay situation

In Panay, protests led by the Responsible Ilonggos for Renewable Energy (RISE) also continue against the two proposed coal-fired power plants in Iloilo Province. DMCI, Inc. is proposing to construct a 100-MW plant in the northern Iloilo town of Concepcion while the Global Business Power Corp. and Panay Power Corp. are planning a 147-MW plant in La Paz district in Iloilo City.

Citing environmental and health concerns, the multi-sectoral group is pushing for the tapping of renewable energy sources which, according to the Affiliated Non-conventional Energy Centers based in Central Philippine University, are abundant in Western Visayas. These include hydro, 300 megawatts; wind, 4,000 megawatts; biomass, 500 megawatts; and solar, 5,000 megawatts. — Nanette L. Guadalquiver

Meralco’s comeuppance
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/0516&172008/opinion04.html


In a number of ways, the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) reminds us of Rameses II, described in the Old Testament as the most oppressive pharaoh (or god-king) Ancient Egypt ever had. By analogy, we Meralco costumers are Rameses II’s oppressed Hebrew slaves, yearning for deliverance, hoping to stage our own exodus from the present untenable situation of exorbitantly high power rates.

We have had to put up with it for too long. The lives of thousands of Hebrew slaves were sacrificed in the construction of the pyramids, the ornate tombs of Egyptian royalty. We are not much different because we are made to pay onerous power rates for the greater glory and strength of the Lopez financial empire.

Meanwhile, the endless rate increases imposed by Meralco come like lacerating whiplashes on our tired, overburdened backs. But now, at least, we have reason to hope Meralco will soon be getting its comeuppance.

But enough of the biblical allusion. Executives of GMA 7, the rival television network of the Lopez-owned ABS-CBN, are now wondering if ABS-CBN has not been paying for its huge power consumption, being a sister company of Meralco. If so, can the management of ABS-CBN, headed by Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III, show proof it has been paying for its power bill? If, indeed, ABS-CBN (where the air-conditioners are on 24/7) doesn’t worry about power costs, it’s downright unfair for GMA 7, which has to deal with escalating overhead expenses.

Meralco executives, under intense questioning by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, reluctantly admitted during a hearing called by the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC) Monday this week that Meralco itself consumes a total of 72 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity a year. Worth close to P500 million, the cost of this power consumption is passed on by Meralco to its customers.

This damning admission has made everybody wonder whether or not the power bills of 15 Lopez-owned Meralco subsidiaries and sister companies—including media giants ABS-CBN and Bayantel—are being paid for by the public, as well.

How Enrile was able to elicit this damning admission was a fine demonstration of his skill as a trial lawyer. He first got the Meralco consumption figure from Jesus Francisco, Meralco president. He then turned to a Meralco subordinate and asked whether Meralco’s power consumption is being chalked up as a system loss. The subordinate’s answer: No, not as a system loss, but charged to Meralco customers just the same under a different nomenclature. He said Meralco customers have been paying for Meralco’s own power bills ever since at P5.70 per kWh.

Winston Garcia, president-general manager of the Government Service Insurance System, buried Meralco deeper by pointing out that Meralco should not only be paying for the electricity it uses, but should also be paying the commercial rate of P8 per kWh. Meralco is a commercial enterprise that exists for profit. With no power bills to worry about, no wonder Meralco has posted a 60-percent increase in revenue in the first quarter of the year, Garcia said.

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, JCPC chair, also scored a point when she drew out the admission that Meralco buys power from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) during peak hours when prices are naturally high, while it sources its power from the Lopez-owned independent power producers (IPPs) during non-peak hours. She said there may be an effort to show that Lopez-owned IPPs sell power at rates cheaper than those it procures from the National Power Corp. and WESM.

Meralco’s dealings with its own IPPs become a big issue when it comes to lowering power rates. Garcia said this was why he was demanding copies of all Meralco contracts with the Lopez-owned IPPs. Transparency is of the utmost importance, he said.

Transparency would be essential in determining where and how much Meralco is sourcing not only electricity, but also its meters, transformers, wires, etc. There should also be transparency in its collection of electric bills from its sister companies; transparency in all the contracts entered into by Meralco, including insurance agreements with what is suspected to be a bogus insurance firm based in the Bahamas.

Garcia says he intends to make the Lopezes fully accountable to Meralco shareholders and customers. “They must be made accountable to the fullest intent of the law,” he adds.

Garcia is not exactly the prophet Moses imbued with miraculous powers to part the Red Sea so we, captive Meralco customers, can pass through to safety. But he certainly has what it takes to shake up the Meralco corporate structure to its rafters.

And, just the other day, another champion of Meralco customers emerged, this time in the House of Representatives, in the person of Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte. In a scathing privileged speech, Villafuerte offered documentary evidence that something’s very wrong with those contracts between Meralco and the Lopez-owned IPPs.

Villafuerte railed against “ghost deliveries” worth P1.08 billion a month from the Lopez-owned First Gas Power to Meralco, fictitious deliveries that were all charged to Meralco customers from December 2000 to November 2001.

The interesting details of the Villafuerte exposé—plus the denial by the Lopez side, to be fair—would best be the subject of my next column.

Meralco’s illegal charge bared
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=politics1_may17_2008
By Romie Evangelista

The Lopez-controlled Manila Electric Co. came under fire yesterday in Congress, with lawmakers asking the Energy Regulatory Commission to penalize Meralco for its illegal charges.

Led by Speaker Prospero Nograles, the lawmakers urged the commission to also order Meralco to immediately refund the customers for the unauthorized charge. They referred to the 89-centavo per kilowatt-hour charge Meralco imposed on its 4.4 million customers last month.

The unauthorized billing, which is apart from the systems losses Meralco passes on to its customers, was disclosed to House leaders by Pete Ilagan, president of the National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms Inc.

The ERC should seriously consider refunds and find out through public hearings what actions they should take against Meralco, Nograles said.

Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing, a member of President Arroyo’s political party Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino, said: “Meralco should refund the 89 cents with dispatch or face more public outrage.”

According to Ilagan, the P0.52/kWh increase in Meralco’s generation charge last April from P4.3885/kWh in March 2008 to P4.9043 in April 2008 has no basis.

Based on Meralco’s Web site itself, Ilagan discovered that National Power Corp. sold in April 2008 a lower generation charge of P4.01/kWh to Meralco or a difference of P0.89/kWh in alleged excess charge when it billedthe consumers for P4.90/kWh.

Cavite Rep. Elpidio “Pidi” Barzaga, also a member of Kampi, also demanded a refund, saying that the overcharge is on top of other burden imposed on hapless customers.

Pasig City Rep. Roman Romulo, a member of Lakas Christian-Muslim Democrats, said ERC must also look into the possibility of penalizing Meralco for its illegal charges.

“The ERC should ask Meralco to explain. After a proper hearing, ERC should come out with a report to the public and, if warranted, corresponding penalties should be imposed by ERC,” said Romulo.

Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante, a Lakas-CMD stalwart, echoed Romulo’s call: “This is within their [ERC] mandate, they should immediately demand from Meralco the reported overcharges and file corresponding charges.”

Party-list Rep. Joel Villanueva of the Citizens Battle Against Corruption said Meralco must show its concern now to their consumers given the spiraling prices of basic commodities and petroleum products.

“Not only is ERC expected to do something about these irregularities, they’re to be blamed to start with.

But this problem I believe can only be solved by concerted efforts from all concerns,” Villanueva said.

^^ When is the next hearing on the Meralco syndicate scam?

Pension fund urges Meralco to reduce rates by P2 a kwh
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?...ws1_may19_2008
By Christine F. Herrera

THE Government Service Insurance System said yesterday it did not have enough proxies to gain management control of power distributor Manila Electric Co., but the state pension fund vowed to sue the power firm should it refuse to lower its power rates and improve its efficiency.

GSIS lawyer Estrella Elamparo made the statement a day after the Saturday deadline for the registration of shareholder proxies ahead of the Meralco stockholders’ meeting set for May 27.

The GSIS wants to gain control of Meralco to force it to open its books. The pension fund claims that the distributor’s power rates are too high, saying it must reduce them and stop charging customers fees that it should be paying itself.

Elamparo said the GSIS did not seek proxies like the family of Oscar and Manolo Lopez, which controls a third of the company distributing electricity to Metro Manila and its suburbs.

“We heard that the Lopezes will vote the Meralco Pension Fund’s 2.2 percent in their favor,” Elamparo said.

“That makes them equal to the GSIS and other government entities’ total holdings in Meralco. They hold 33.4 percent of the shares, and we have 33 to 35 percent. So they are allotted four seats in the board and another four seats for the government.”

Elamparo said there were two vacant seats for “independent” directors, but one allegedly had been given to former Supreme Court Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, who is also a director of the Lopez-owned First Philippine Holdings Co.

GSIS is seeking to replace Meralco’s corporate secretary with former Supreme Court Justice Hugo Gutierrez, but the special board meeting that was set for the purpose last week was postponed.

“We are confident during the stockholders’ meeting that majority of the shareholders would put pressure on the board by questioning mismanagement and inefficiency in Meralco operations,” Elamparo said.

She said GSIS president and general manager Winston Garcia, who represents the pension fund on Meralco’s board, would also try to persuade stockholders that reducing its rates by P2 per kilowatt hour would be good for the company.

“Lowering the rates by two pesos is a good start,” she said.

“Once inefficiency and mismanagement are corrected, Meralco could reduce the rates more and at the same time keep the company more profitable.”

Garcia would file criminal and civil charges against Meralco officials if they failed to be “as transparent as expected,” Elamparo said,

“The filing of the cases will depend on the turnout of the stockholders’ meeting,” she said, but added the GSIS welcomed the Lopez camp’s move to explain its position on power rates to the Cabinet in Panglao, Bohol, on Tuesday.

Outgoing Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo said Meralco’s representatives had asked to explain its position to the Cabinet, but he was not sure if Meralco chairman Manolo Lopez would be present at the meeting.

“The government has already given its position: We want the power rates of Meralco to be lowered,” Saludo said.

“Now they are being given a chance to present their views to the government. So the Cabinet will listen when they make their presentation,”

Saludo said President Arroyo would also meet with other power distributors from the Visayas and Mindanao.

Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone said the President would preside over an energy forum in Bohol after the Cabinet meeting.

“The President wants to find ways and means to bring down power rates in the Visayas and Mindanao because the omnibus petition only covers Meralco, which caters mostly to Luzon-based consumers,” he said.

“The President wants to make sure the people in the Visayas and Mindanao are not left out in the efforts to lower power rates.”

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte vowed to get tough on Meralco’s officials and the Lopez-owned First Gas Power Corp. over claims Meralco charges consumers P12.99 billion for “ghost deliveries” of electricity.

“Documents don’t lie, especially if they are filed before the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Energy Regulatory Commission and are official records of Meralco and First Gas,” Villafuerte said in a statement.

He had earlier accused Meralco of paying First Gas P12.99 billion from December 2000 to November 2001, although First Gas did not deliver electricity to Meralco. With Joyce Pangco Pañares and Macon Ramos-Araneta

Visayas to harness sea currents for power

MANILA - The Philippines will try to generate electricity from sea currents under a project funded by an Italian grant, an official said yesterday.

A turbine on a barge would be moored in the Tanon Strait to see if the currents there could be used to power streetlights in a Cebu town, Science and Technology Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said.

The barge would lie between the central waters of the islands of Cebu and Negros and the project would hopefully generate 50-100 kilowatts of electricity, Yumul added.

The P80-million ($1.9-million) grant from the Italian government will be used to buy the turbine from an Italian firm specializing in experimental technology.

Yumul hoped that the project, to be installed late this year, would help the Philippines in its quest to develop environmentally-friendly energy sources that lessen dependence on expensive imported fuel.*AFP

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/May/20/businessnews4.htm

Visayas to harness sea currents for power

MANILA - The Philippines will try to generate electricity from sea currents under a project funded by an Italian grant, an official said yesterday.

A turbine on a barge would be moored in the Tanon Strait to see if the currents there could be used to power streetlights in a Cebu town, Science and Technology Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said.

The barge would lie between the central waters of the islands of Cebu and Negros and the project would hopefully generate 50-100 kilowatts of electricity, Yumul added.

The P80-million ($1.9-million) grant from the Italian government will be used to buy the turbine from an Italian firm specializing in experimental technology.

Yumul hoped that the project, to be installed late this year, would help the Philippines in its quest to develop environmentally-friendly energy sources that lessen dependence on expensive imported fuel.*AFP

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2008/May/20/businessnews4.htm

Kailangang bilisan nila ang pagtatayo niyan (without sacrificing quality) dahil nagkakaroon na ng rolling blackouts diyan. Sana magawa rin iyan sa Luzon para mabawasan ang pesteng reliance natin sa fossil fuels.

Kaasar kanina sa news,
Pinuri ni Gloria ang Visayan Grid dahil mas mura daw ang singil ng kuryente kumpara sa Meralco...Parang di sya generalized dahil ang PECO pa rin ang isa sa mga pinaka-mahal sumingil ng kuryente sa bansa...

Ewan ko ba kung bakit walang pumapansin dito, samantalang medyo metikuloso ang isyu na to sa kadahilanang parte nito ay gawa ng mga Lopezes.

Kaasar kanina sa news,
Pinuri ni Gloria ang Visayan Grid dahil mas mura daw ang singil ng kuryente kumpara sa Meralco...Parang di sya generalized dahil ang PECO pa rin ang isa sa mga pinaka-mahal sumingil ng kuryente sa bansa...

Ewan ko ba kung bakit walang pumapansin dito, samantalang medyo metikuloso ang isyu na to sa kadahilanang parte nito ay gawa ng mga Lopezes.

Mas mura pala ang kuryente sa Tuguegarao City?

Magkano ang generation charge sa inyo?
Kasi ang sa Iloilo City (which is PECO area), they charge as much as P8.00 to P10.00 for generation charge...ang hirit ng PECO, mababa ang distribution charge kuno nila pero sobrang mahal ng bill tas palagi pang brownout...

Magkano ang generation charge sa inyo?
Kasi ang sa Iloilo City (which is PECO area), they charge as much as P8.00 to P10.00 for generation charge...ang hirit ng PECO, mababa ang distribution charge kuno nila pero sobrang mahal ng bill tas palagi pang brownout...

Hindi ako taga-Tuguegarao City, and I am not the one who is paying the bills here.

Naku po, ayokong manghusga pero is that the reason why Iloilo suffers rolling blackouts presently? Very low rates come with a very low class service you know.

A chunk of Philippine power comes from coal, cheap but dirty (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=187849&page=27)

Most of the electricity that lights our houses, runs our appliances, and power our factories come from power plants which produce energy by burning substances such as coal, bunker, and diesel.

But of these three traditional energy sources, coal is considered as the Philippines’ largest power source, comprising one-fifth of the country’s total energy mix—the total amount of energy produced regardless of its source—according to 2005 data from the Department of Energy.

Despite being considered as the cheapest yet dirtiest energy source, coal has reached record prices since China and Indonesia have cut its exports to secure its own supplies.

Even Australia, another coal-exporting country, has restricted shipments, helping boost prices of the commodity.

With surging prices of coal and oil, alternative forms of energy—previously considered as too expensive to develop—are becoming attractive, both to producers, users, and investors.

Among these include water, wind, solar, and even organic waste.

“The country has a very big renewable energy potential. It’s clean and we can save money because we don’t have to import anything unlike in fossil fuel-fired plants," said Jasper Inventor, spokesman of environment group Greenpeace.

Philippines rich in renewable energy sources

Experts agree that the Philippines, being rich in natural resources, can tap nature’s elements to come up with electricity from alternative and renewable sources.

For instance, electricity can be produced by the sheer force of water.

Turbines in hydro-electric power plants harness the force of water—running either vertically or horizontally—which produce electricity.

Using the same principle, the force of the wind can also be harnessed to turn turbines inside windmills.

At present, the total energy capacity of all wind-powered plants in the Philippines is around 25.5 megawatts (mW), according to Fortunato Sibayan of the Energy Department’s Renewable Energy Division.

The energy capacity is the amount of electricity that a power plant can produce at a given time. He said that the biggest of these wind-powered plants could be found in Bangui, Ilocos Norte.

Items usually thrown away can also be burned and processed to produce electricity.

Called biomass, these domestic or agricultural wastes include wood, garbage, and rice hulls, corn cobs, and crushed sugarcane called bagasse.

When burned, these items are expected to produce steam from boiling water, which can eventually be used to run a generator.

The sun’s energy reaching the Earth can also be trapped inside solar panels. Once converted into heat, solar energy can be used to create steam which can run a turbine generator.

But the technology used to convert solar power into electricity—however clean—comes at a price.

Solar power costs range from P20 to P40 per kilowatt hour, discouraging companies such as Meralco from using this form of energy due to high rates.

In turn, high rates are brought about by expensive investments involved in establishing a renewable energy power plant.

Alternative energy costs expensive but inflation-proof

In the long run, both Inventor and Sibayan agree that electricity sourced from renewable sources would at least remain constant over a long period of time and remain unaffected by inflation.

Power plants which rely on coal and oil are primarily affected by the prices of these raw materials, which may rise and fall depending on global inventories and demand.

As a result, electricity generated by these facilities increase whenever raw materials used by power plants climb.

“How will you explain that to the consumers when they complain even at the slightest hike)," Sibayan said.

According to the energy official, the best thing to do is to grant incentives to power generation companies that utilize renewable sources.

He said the high costs of technology used by these companies can be cushioned by awarding them tax incentives.

Another crucial issue also involves formulating cost-efficient means of generating energy without compromising the environmental safety.

Fossil fuels, especially coal, emit several hazardous elements into the air when these are burned. For instance, coal, when burned, gives off the most carbon dioxide, which largely contributes to the climate change.

Studies have shown that people living within a 10-kilometer radius from a coal-fired power plant develop neurological, cardiovascular, and respiratory problems.

This gives the government more reason to harness the Philippines’ renewable energy potential.

Program minimizes dependence on imported fossil fuel

Labayan said the Energy Department’s program encouraging the use of renewable energy sources has been going well so far, having been able to help minimize the country’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.

He noted that the energy produced through local sources and materials have improved, accounting 57 percent of the total power mix, while the remaining 43 percent of electricity still comes from imported fossil fuels.

“Renewable energy is very appropriate for us. We need to develop renewable sources. It is beneficial for everyone. The potential is really huge," Inventor said.

Unfortunately, a proposed law which would encourage the development of renewable energy has remained pending in Congress for the past two decades, Inventor said.

“There is a lack of political will. The government only needs to lay down foundation and create strong renewable energy policy mechanisms," said Inventor, adding that the the Clean, Renewable and Alternative Energy Act of 2006 could provide such mechanisms.

By LALA RIMANDO (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=118766)
abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak

In a move to assert control of the giant power distributor's board, the Lopez family is weighing various options. One of them is an alliance with five unnamed foreign companies that would buy out the government's stake in Meralco.

In the run up to the May 27 annual stockholders meeting, the Lopez family is scrambling for partners to buy out the stake of the government pension fund, GSIS, whose head, the swashbuckling Winston Garcia, sits on the Meralco board.

The Lopez family has a 33.4 percent stake in Meralco through First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC), while GSIS and other government entities have 35 percent.

While a proxy fight between GSIS and the Lopez family for the hundreds of shareholders that own the remaining 32 percent is reportedly underway, bagging an investor, or a group of investors, to buy out the government's stake is less tedious and—given the approaching May 27 deadline—quicker for the Lopezes.

For the Lopezes, it pays to have a party in the board friendlier to them than Garcia, who has engaged the family in a public war over allegations of irregular transactions between Meralco and other family-controlled businesses, including the power generation companies that sell to Meralco.

Earlier, it was rumored that the Lopez family was eyeing an alliance with food manufacturing giant, San Miguel Corporation, as potential buyer of the government stake. But San Miguel president Ramon Ang denied it.

Foreign investors

In the sidelines of FPHC's annual stockholders meeting Monday, FPHC president Elpidio Ibañez declined to name the foreign investors but said that all of these companies have conducted research about Meralco. He hinted further that the interested firms are known investment fund managers and energy companies.

Ibañez said that as a utility company, Meralco is considered a defensive stock that hold up in hard times because demand does not decrease dramatically as it may in other sectors. "Given conditions today, investors are moving away from more risky investments and lower yielding [investments] given that foreign interest rates are also low," he told reporters.

Meralco Chairman Manolo Lopez, however, did not say if any deals have already been firmed up with the foreign investors. "As to how serious they are, I am not sure," he said.

In various abs-cbnnews.com/Newsbreak interviews with GSIS's Garcia, he said he is willing to sell the government's stake "at the right price."

Meralco's stock price has gone through some beating since the intense squabble between Garcia and the Lopez family and allies broke out in late April. At that time, Meralco stocks cost P81. In the past days, Meralco stocks were hovering at P69, almost a 15 percent drop.

Highly leveraged

FPHC Chairman Oscar Lopez has repeatedly said that they don't have the financial capability to solely acquire the government stake in Meralco.

The government stake is estimated to be worth a staggering P27 billion.

FPHC is already highly leveraged with debts acquired when it previously bought more assets in the energy sector to beef up its portfolio and make it the largest vertically-integrated power generation play in the country. In 2007, an FPHC subsidiary bought the government's stake in listed company, PNOC-EDC, the country's biggest geothermal power producer, for about P58.5 billion.

Also in 2007, FPHC again forked more than P2 billion when it bought the Meralco stakes of its Spanish partner and of the Meralco retirement fund to consolidate its interest in Meralco to 33.4 percent, just before GSIS upped its shareholdings to 33 percent.

Both moves were partly funded by loans.

In the FPHC's first quarter 2008 earnings report, its bottomline decreased by 26 percent to P2.1 billion compared to the same period last year due, to higher finance costs. Its debt level increased by 189 percent to P123 billion.

Utility companies, like Meralco and FPHC, have high capital requirements, thus they generally source debt financing. But since they are in a highly regulated environment where charges to end-consumers are always kept in check, debt levels need to be managed since finance costs eat into their bottomline.

GSIS, Meralco trade barbs
President forms group to look at lowering rates
By Angelo S. Samonte And Jomar Canlas, Reporters
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/may/21/yehey/top_stories/20080521top1.html

The word war between the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) continued during a Cabinet meeting in Bohol on Tuesday. GSIS President Winston Garcia said Meralco could reduce power cost by 6 centavos to P3 per kilowatt-hour, should the power distributor stop its “abusive measures.”

Meralco officials fired back, saying the high power rate charged by the National Power Corp. (Napocor) is the reason behind the high cost of power in Metro Manila. They denied incorporating the electric bills of the Lopez-owned companies in the system losses being charged to electricity consumers.

They also reiterated their desire to scrap the expanded Value-Added Tax (E-VAT) on fuel and electricity to reduce power rates in the country.

Only Meralco President Jesus Francisco and Board Director Christian Monsod attended the Cabinet meeting with President Gloria Arroyo on Bohol island.

The Lopez family who runs Meralco, was supposed to meet with the President, but the Lopezes did not attend the meeting, saying Malacañang had not invited them.

GMA orders study

President Arroyo on Tuesday created a committee to study how to cut Meralco’s power rates and to know if a leadership takeover serves the public’s best interest.

“President Arroyo also instructed the core group of economic managers including the secretaries of the Department of Budget and Management, Department of Energy, Department of Finance, Department of Trade and Industry and National Economic and Development Authority to study the positions presented by Meralco on concerns recently raised by the government. The group would then recommend actions to further cut power costs,” Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo said.

Secretary Cerge Remonde of the Presidential Management Staff said the study group will only tackle policy issues and does not intend to duplicate the functions of the Energy Regulatory Commission, which is also studying the issue of power rate hike.

Saludo reported Francisco and Monsod said Meralco is willing to undertake open access and review its power supply contracts after President Arroyo expressed support for open access or free competition among independent power producers to avoid monopoly in the power sector.

The Cabinet also urged the renegotiation of all Meralco’s contracts with its power suppliers.

“The President and the Cabinet supported the early implementation of open competition in power supply through open access. They also urged renegotiation of Meralco’s contracts with its power suppliers. Meralco said it is willing to undertake open access and review its power supply contracts,” Saludo said.

Meralco officials said all contracts with independent power producers should be reviewed to ensure equal treatment.

Open access would allow big power users consuming one megawatt a month or more to buy power from generating plants they choose at the cheaper rates.

Plunder charges filed

Also on Tuesday, plunder charges were filed before the Ombudsman against 15 Meralco officials, the Energy Regulatory Commission and Napocor for making illegal charges to the public.

In a five-page complaint-affidavit, multisectoral consumer groups filed complaints for violation of Republic Act 7080 or the Anti-Plunder Law along with fraud and illegal exactions, economic sabotage, large-scale estafa and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against Meralco Chairman Manuel Lopez, Lopez Group of Companies Chairman Oscar Lopez, Director Eugenio Lopez 3rd, Meralco President Francisco, Senior Vice-President Ireneo Acuna and Treasurer Rafael Andrada.

Also included in the charges are Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Rodolfo Albano Jr., former commission Chairman Fe Barin, Commissioners Mary Anne Colayco, Carlos Alindada, Leticia Ibay, former Commissioners Oliver Butalid, Jesus Alcordo, Raul Tan and Alejandro Barin. The commission officials are also charged administratively for violation of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.

Nongovernment groups Ang Puwersang Pilipinong Inaapi of Chairman Alberto Ong Jr., along with Alyansa ng Koalisyon Uno at Overseas Filipino Workers, Bagong Bayani Organizations, Alliance of Concerned Young Builders Organization, Council of Commonwealth Affairs, National Federation for Peace in Muslim Mindanao and several other multisectoral groups led the filing of the complaint.

According to the complaint, “… their personal and business gain, money in the aggregate amount of P30-million illegally collected from the three and a half million customers from 1994 to 1998 which Meralco used to pay for its income tax liabilities and obligation due the government as conclusively declared with finality of judgment by the Supreme Court.”

The complaint avers that such amount is considered as public funds in the nature of income taxes “to the damage and prejudice of the government and the Meralco customers/consumers.”

They also questioned the return of Meralco and the national television network ABS-CBN to the “Lopez clan without any single centavo paid, and without the consuming public knowing the terms and condition for said turnover.”

The complainants included as annexes their billings and letter of Meralco to then-President Ferdi-nand Marcos selling Meralco to the government.

^^Box-office to! trailer pa lang puno na ng action:)

^^ At the end of the day, what matters most for consumers is whether we will be able to have a lower electricity bill.

Ibaba ang singil ng koryente!!paging Meralco!!!:mad2:

^^ our electric bill for this month is double that of the previous :ohno:

Interim open access to lower electricity costs

PANGLAO ISLAND, BOHOL — Industry groups, including power producers, will ask the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to declare interim open access in a bid to achieve lower power rates.

Ernesto B. Pantangco, president of the Philippine Independent Power Producers Association (PIPPA), told the Cabinet yesterday that the move will allow large power users — those consuming one megawatt a month or more — to buy power from the generating plants of their choice.

"This [proposal] will really level the playing field and ensure that there is no dominant player that can exercise undue advantage," he said.

Mr. Pantangco did not say when the petition would be filed. He said at least 600 businesses in Luzon would benefit, including members of the Semiconductors and Electronics Industries in the Philippines, Inc.

"These are mostly from the semiconductor and export industries as well as commercial establishments such as Shoemart and Ayala malls that consume six megawatts per month," he said.

Open access would allow consumers to select electricity suppliers. The Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001 sets requirements before this can be attained, among them the privatization of at least 70% of the state’s power generating assets.

The Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM), Mr. Pantangco noted, has so far privatized only 43% of the power plants and not one independent power producer (IPP) contract.

"The idea is how to accelerate open access given these limitations," he said.

Mr. Pantangco stressed that there would be no need to amend the EPIRA law as industry stakeholders had agreed to back the interim open access petition.

Bills have been filed at Congress seeking to accelerate open access by lowering the privatization threshold. Amending the EPIRA is in the list of government priority measures.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday indicated that she was willing to forego support for the EPIRA amendments.

"If the industry will come up with open access, then we will just prioritize the renewable energy bill," she said.

http://www.bworldonline.com/BW052108/content.php?id=005

Spanish firm Abengoa Bioenergia, S.A has announced plans to invest in the country for the development of an integrated farm for the production of ethanol.

Spanish economic counselor Javier Alvarez said representatives of the firm are in the country to discuss with prospective local partners the possibility of producing ethanol using local raw material.

Alvarez said the company is looking for a 10-to 15-hectare area that will be developed into an integrated farm.

Aside from Abengoa, Alvarez said that 23 other Spanish companies are in the country to look for investment opportunities.

A two-day Spain-Philippines business meeting has been set and Alvarez said the companies will be looking for possible tie-ups with local firms as well as investment destinations.

Seven of the firms are involved in the energy sector. They are Guascor S.A., Isofoton, S.A, Advena Consulting, Domingomonserrat Enginyeria S.L., Tecnica Y Construccion De Catalunya SL., and Geobat Energia, S.L.

Geobat Energia, S.L. is involved in renewable energy.

Guascor has four lines of business that cover the entire spectrum of the value chain of technology for using light and solar radiation: photovoltaic solar energy, thermal solar energy, distribution market (national and international) and project market.

Alvarez said the company would welcome meeting with potential partners in these areas both from the public and private sector. He said almost all of the energy companies are looking for tie ups with either the government or a private firm.

Fabricantes De Baldosas Ceramicas is a Spanish tile manufacturer that would like to either form a joint venture with a local tile manufacturer or collaborate for technical assistance.

Aside from energy, Alvarez said the Spaniards are likewise interested in the infrastructure industry. - Ma. Elisa P. Osorio/Philstar (http://beta.ph.news.yahoo.com/star/20080520/tbs-spanish-ethanol-philippines-0ec9746.html)

So, Kelan Ibababa ang presyo ng Kuryente

Gonzalez vows to prosecute Meralco officials on P25-B trust funds
By Perseus Echeminada
Friday, May 23, 2008
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20080522154

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez vowed yesterday to prosecute officials of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) if they are found to have illegally used a P25-billion trust fund raised from charges for the installation of electricity meters.
“We will prosecute if cases are filed,” Gonzalez told reporters during the weekly Usapang Daungan sa Danarra Hotel in Quezon City.

Gonzalez said that as a consumer, he also wants to know where his P3,000 deposit for the installation of power meter went.

“I want to know where the money is deposited. The amount is earning huge amount of interest and it belongs to the consumers,” he said.
Gonzalez said consumers are entitled to the interests earned by their money held in trust by the electric firm.

“I also want to know if the money was invested in other business ventures because such action would constitute estafa,” he said.
He said consumers may even initiate the filing of plunder charges against

Meralco if the latter is found to have used the money for other ventures.
At the same forum, Gonzalez reiterated that bringing down electricity rates is the government’s main concern, not a Meralco takeover.

He said the administration made clear its intention at a recent Cabinet meeting in Panglao, Bohol during which top Meralco officials were given the chance to air their side on the issue of high power rates.
“The social and political aspects, including a takeover (of Meralco) by the government, were not on the table during the meeting. The immediate concern was the high cost of electricity,” Gonzalez pointed out.
Meralco ‘monopoly’ blamed

A senior lawmaker said the dismantling of the “monopoly” of Meralco in the power distribution business will greatly reduce electricity cost.
Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte gave the opinion in House Resolution 592, which calls for concrete measures to ensure “consumer protection” through a “fair and reasonable price” of electricity.

He said amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) should include the “demonopolization of ownership and dispersal of shares of public utilities” like Meralco.

Villafuerte’s resolution also calls for the “regulation of transactions of related party interests between and among generation, transmission and distribution utilities.” Meralco transacts with affiliate independent power producers or IPPs.

Villafuerte also called on the Lopezes to pay back its four million customers the P30 billion it overcharged from 1994 to 2003, as ordered by the Supreme Court.
“It is not fair that all consumers will not be refunded fully for the income taxes that the SC ordered refunded. Billions of pesos remain to be refunded by Meralco,” he said.

Villafuerte wanted a refund of meter deposits of consumers, “plus an imputed 10 percent per annum from dates deposits were made.”
“This meter deposits were made many years ago but until now consumers are still in a quandary as to when they will see the light when Meralco shall comply with the billions of pesos that Meralco used at the expense of the consumers,” he said.

Villafuerte accused the power distributor of “cheating” with its admission during a Senate hearing last week that it passed on to its consumers its P531-million electric consumption in 2007.
“Consumers are not obligated to pay electricity that they never received or enjoyed using. Electricity, which Meralco appropriates for its own use, is not pilferage. That constitutes cheating by Meralco in layman’s term, if passed on to consumers,” he said.

Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing observed that Meralco violated its own corporate principle when it made poor consumers subsidize its own power consumption.

“The Lopezes want to portray themselves as a business family with a conscience. But if that’s true, why are they burdening the poor with pass-on charges just because they are allowed by law to get away with it?” he asked.

He said Meralco “cannot forever defend its free use of electricity and its collection of systems loss charges by citing Republic Act 7832 and favorable rulings by the Energy Regulatory Commission.”
“What is legal is not always moral,” he said, adding that RA7832 is a “class legislation in that it gives power distributors an avenue to collect losses from consumers, something not enjoyed by other utilities.”

Bagatsing has filed a bill at the House of Representatives seeking to repeal RA 7832, or the Anti-Electricty Pilferage Act.
“At the end of the day, the Lopezes have to look in the mirror and ask themselves whether it is right, whether it is moral for the poor to subsidize the electricity use of the rich, like the behemoth that is Meralco,” he said.

Refund issues already addressed

Meralco vice president for corporate communications Elpi Cuna said they have already answered issues on refunds raised by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile.
He said that in the case of bill deposits for instance, consumers may get them back – including the interests – when they terminate their contracts with Meralco.
He said the deposit is allowed under the Magna Carta for residential and non-residential users of electricity.

“The charging of bill deposit is to guarantee payment of bills, as stated in Chapter III, Article 28 of the Magna Carta. Under the code, a customer is obligated to pay a bill deposit, which is equivalent to an estimated one-month bill, as opposed to the two months erroneously reported,” Cuna said.
He also said Meralco no longer collects meter deposits and that it is waiting for ERC to set the guidelines or the mechanics for refund.

“Meralco has ceased charging the meter deposit since the Magna Carta for residential electricity consumers and the DSOAR (Distribution Services and Open Access Rules) were implemented,” he said.
ERC released a copy of the final draft on the rules governing the meter deposit refund last May 8. Meralco was given until May 23, 2008 to comment on the draft.
Cuna also stressed that the refund for the P30-billion overcharging is still ongoing.
“As of December 2007, approximately P21 billion or 70 percent of the total amount has already been processed. On the issue of interest on the refund, the Supreme Court has already ruled that the refund will not bear interest,” Cuna said.
The Meralco spokesman also rejected Enrile’s claim regarding corporate electricity bills.
“All distribution utilities in the country are allowed to use one percent of total input for company use. This is an ERC-approved mechanism as stated in the Philippine Distribution Code (Section 3.4.1),” Cuna said.
“In Meralco’s situation, though the company is allowed to pass on to its customers the equivalent of one percent of net system input, only 0.3 percent is being used by Meralco,” he added.–With Delon Porcalla, Donnabelle Gatdula, Jess Diaz and Christina Paguinto

Gonzalez vows to prosecute Meralco officials on P25-B trust funds


Then maybe his son can start doing some prosecutions with PECO too...hmmmm.

The Lopezes are really a bunch of greedy monsters!
The Lopezes were not victims of martial law, but were in fact beneficiary of martial law, when Marcos helped them out of their financial mess.

Now I agree with Winston Garcia that Meralco should be divided, not into two but at least 4 divisions.


Meralco—a glimpse of the past
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/0523&242008/opinion03.html

Oscar Lopez is a prominent, formidable figure in the local business community. He is the current patriarch of the very powerful and influential Lopez family, having filled the shoes of the late Genie Lopez.

Genie, who was fondly called Kapitan by peers and subordinates, was, of course, the head honcho of the family when he was still around. But he is more widely remembered now as the man who nurtured ABS-CBN to its current preeminent stature in the local media industry. His son

Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III now heads the media network.
Oscar now speaks for the entire gaggle of Lopez business interests, being chairman-CEO of First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPHC), the holding company. He is the elder brother of Manolo Lopez, Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) chairman-CEO.

The Lopez financial empire includes, but is certainly not limited to, four principal businesses, namely, First Gen Corp. (power generation), Meralco (power distribution), First Philippine Infrastructure (North Luzon Expressway) and Philippine Electric Corp. (manufacturing utility transformers, meters).

These four, including several subsidiaries, all of which are on a break-neck expansion mode, are the Lopez family’s great money mills.
In his report to the 46th annual stockholders’ meeting just this week, Oscar Lopez reported a modest net income of P4.475 billion. But that nicely understates the coming of a new wave of subsidiaries in their corporate pipeline.

The ABS-CBN radio-television network is separate and distinct from the “core” businesses of the Lopez family. It was, arguably for political and defensive reasons, that ABS-CBN was set up by the late Eugenio Lopez, in partnership with his brother, the late former Vice President Fernando Lopez.

It was set up in pre-martial law days at the height of the political power and influence of the sugar barons of yore, dating as far back as the Elpidio Quirino era.

Documented accounts suggest that what we now know as the ABS-CBN media giant was set up to serve as the royal guard of all the family’s financial and political interests. Picture a monolithic castle as a representation of the Lopez empire. Within are the vast treasures of the realm. The protective moat, turrets, armory, towers and all defensive facilities are all run by the ABS-CBN network.

With the network’s formidable nationwide reach, rare is the politician with ambitions to fame and ultimate power (the presidency) who would dare challenge the supremacy of the castle’s principal occupants.

Now, how did the Lopezes get to where they are now? We only vaguely remember that at one point in recent history, the Lopezes seemed to have lost it all. That was when, under President Ferdinand Marcos’s martial-law regime, they were practically banished from society and branded as a vicious oligarchy. We also recall, but not too clearly how, the Lopezes were luckily able to recover Meralco and ABS-CBN in 1986, courtesy of Cory Aquino, based on a claim that they were victims of martial law.

It may be useful to take a glimpse of the past to put in perspective the current raging controversy, at the center of which is Meralco, and the oppressive power rates it has been imposing on the people.
In his book Greed and Betrayal, journalist Cecil Arillo (now an academician with a master’s degree from the Pacific Western University in Los Angeles) gives a fully documented account of how the Lopez family grew to be so financially and politically powerful under 10 presidents, from Manuel Quezon to Cory Aquino. Chapter 15 is all about this family, which only this year was ranked by Forbes magazine as the 10th richest in the Philippines.

Arillo implies that the phenomenal growth of the Lopez financial empire largely sprung from its control of Meralco.
It is in this chapter where Arillo chronicles the Lopez family’s rise and fall, and its eventual recovery starting in 1986, when Aquino assumed power. Here are excerpts from Chapter 15 of Greed and Betrayal:

“Since Meralco was acquired by the Lopezes, it was transformed from a highly profitable organization distributing power to the Greater Manila Area into a hydra-headed monster that branched out into real estate and construction, petroleum refining and the manufacture of electric goods and merchandise.

“Ever since the Lopezes took over Meralco, they were able to secure approval for several rate increases using their political influence in the Public Service Commission, at the same time raking in huge profits at the expense of the consumers…

“One particular document revealed that the profits derived by Meralco through excessive power-rate increases were used by the Lopezes in sundry undertakings far removed from the main business of Meralco.

“A set of documents found in a steel cabinet in Channel 4 during the 1989 coup attempt said that Meralco, under the Lopezes, grew so huge that it defied the powers of the president, and any government attempt to curb its greed was called oppression or fascism. It resisted government efforts to collect legitimate taxes on its income and its imports, passing off its defiance as enlightened criticism of the government.

“According to the documents, Meralco Securities Corp. [MSC] violated provisions of the Internal Revenue Code when it did not report its true gross income. In 1969, this company received regular dividends from Meralco amounting to P233.25 million. But MSC reported as its gross income only 25 percent of the amount or P58.31 million.

“For its crude-oil importation, Meralco bought a total of 32,583.65 metric tons but paid only P13,033 specific tax.
“Since 1965. . . the Lopezes had remitted abroad a total of $44,164,671.11 for payment of contractual obligations and services rendered by some people. However one looked at it, the dollar reserves of the country were depleted considerably and the fact that one family did it must be viewed as grave abuse of power, said the documents.

“The Lopezes through their advantages were able to borrow a grand total of $245,353,906.95 from foreign financial institutions. Documents revealed that Benjamin [Kokoy] Romualdez inherited this huge indebtedness when he acquired Meralco after Marcos declared martial law in 1972. . . .

“When the Lopezes retook Meralco, ABS-CBN and other corporations after the Edsa uprising, they claimed that they were victims of the Marcos regime.
“But a set of documents gathered by this writer belied their claim, showing that they sold their Meralco shares without duress on December 16, 1974, to Meralco Foundation Inc., which assumed the indebtedness of Benpres Holdings in Meralco Securities Corporation to foreign and local banks amounting to P101.1 million.

“The deed of sale was guaranteed by the Philippine National Bank through a letter of credit it issued to the foundation for the purchase of the Benpres shares of stock.

“The foundation also assumed Benpres’ P9.5-million debt on stock subscription and an obligation to pay Benpres P48.6 million on its equity, payable by installment over a 10-year period at a 10-percent interest on the unpaid balance.

“In other words, what this particular set of documents showed was that the Lopezes were not victims of martial law, but were in fact beneficiary of martial law, when Marcos helped them out of their financial mess.
“What was ironic was that the takeover by the Lopez family of the Meralco. . . was shrouded in mystery despite President Aquino’s avowed policy of full disclosure and transparency. . . .”

RP to tap renewable energy
first before going nuclear

By Paul Anthony A. Isla
Reporter

EVEN AS the country keeps its doors open to the possible tapping of nuclear-energy sources and technical assistance offered by neighboring Asean countries on the development of nuclear energy in the Philippines, the government would still rather develop its renewable-energy sources before it taps the use of nuclear-energy sources, Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes said Monday.

“We want a balanced energy mix that’s independent and sourced from indigenous energy sources,” the energy chief said in the light of Korea Electric Power Corp.’s (Kepco) offer to provide assistance to the Philippine government in determining and developing the use of nuclear sources in the country.

Reyes admitted that nuclear-energy sources have advantages and disadvantages, and one of its advantages is that it is a very stable source of baseload in terms of quality and quantity over a long period.

But he added that one of its disadvantages there are issues needed to be threshed out in terms of nuclear waste and the aversion of people to nuclear energy.

“Nevertheless, nuclear is something we have to look into and to keep our options open. We just have to study first the supply-and-demand situation and to whether, in fact, we have to allow energy sources from nuclear to kick in,” he said.

Reyes said that what the country needs to avert is that there should be no power shortages that should be avoided at all costs.

As much as possible, Reyes said, the government wants to develop the country’s renewable sources of energy but if it would not suffice, it would only be then that the country would have to consider going nuclear.

“Rest assured the government will not go into this direction if it is not safe and if technology is not up to our standards,” Reyes said.

He added that the government also targets to accelerate the renewable-energy program in view of the volatility in imported fuel sources such as oil and coal, which is causing a lot of problems to consumers.

Reyes said there is a need to shift toward the use of indigenous renewable sources of energy, and that the government will exhaust all possible means in this direction.

“Unless additional capacities are built, based on our projections, the country may experience a power shortage in the next three to four years,” said Reyes.

The energy chief assured consumers that the DOE is finalizing its projections.

Reyes committed that they will have their final recommendations submitted to President Arroyo by next week.

Reyes said that the DOE has even endorsed 10 energy-related Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects in a bid to encourage development of renewable-energy sources in the country.

To date, according to Reyes, the DOE has endorsed 10 projects under the CDM that include four biomass projects; one wind project; two waste-treatment plant projects; two hyroelectric-power-plant projects; and one geothermal power-plant project.

Reyes said the total greenhouse-gas reduction for the 10 projects has been estimated at 682,130 tons of carbon dioxide.

The DOE has the 33-megawatt (MW) Northwind Bangui Bay Project in Ilocos Norte; the 20-MW Nasulo Geothermal Project in Negros Oriental; Tanduay Distillers Inc.’s 15-MW Watewater Treatment facility in Batangas; the 8-MW San Carlos Renewable Project in Negros Occidental; the 1-MW Sipangpang Mini Hydropower Project in Surigao del Sur; First Farmers Holdings Corp.’s 8-MW to 12-MW Bagasse Cogeneration Plant in Negros Occidental; Philippine Sinter Corp.’s Cooler Waste Heat Recovery Project in Misamis Oriental; the 42.5-MW Hedcor Sibulan Hydropower Project in Davao del Sur; FR Cement Corp.’s Replacement of Fossil Fuel by Rice Husk Biomass in Rizal; and Quezon City’s Biogas Emission Reduction Project.

The CDM is a flexible mechanism developed under the Kyoto Protocol, wherein a developed country can invest in various abatement projects in a host developing country and, in so doing, receive credits for the carbon emission reductions resulting from the project.

Reyes said the activities and projects eligible in the energy sector include renewable-energy development, alternative-fuels utilization, and energy-efficiency improvements.

“Greenhouse-gas reduction may not now appear substantial. But the country is gradually building momentum and intends to maximize its potential for generating some of the resources needed to extensively develop clean and renewable-energy sources in the country,” said Reyes.

Source (http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/11062007/economy05.html)

So Kelan ibababa ang Presyo ng Kuryente!

So Kelan ibababa ang Presyo ng Kuryente!

Bumaba na kaya lang katiting...

Hindi Puedeng Katiting lang. Don't let Meralco get away with the fraud they have been practicing.

GSIS reveals Meralco plot to heckle Garcia
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/may/27/yehey/top_stories/20080527top2.html
By Likha Cuevas-Miel, Reporter

The plot seems to get uglier, if the state pension fund is to be believed.

On Monday, eve of a stockholders’ meeting of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) revealed an alleged plan of the Lopez-owned utility to heckle and discredit its general manager and president, Winston Garcia.

During a briefing, lawyer Estrella Elamparo, also GSIS chief legal counsel, told reporters that a group of Meralco employees, together with some members of a non-Meralco-based labor union, came forward and informed the pension fund’s public affairs office that there was a “rehearsed drama” and staged heckling of Garcia in today’s stockholders’ meeting.

“The plan was hatched by certain officers, certain persons in the management of Meralco, to [restrain] the rights of shareholders, especially GSIS, to be heard” in the meeting, Elamparo said.

Among those named responsible for the alleged script were Leonisa de la Llana, head of Meralco’s human resources and corporate services; Ruben Sapitula, vice president for human resources; and Ricky Concepcion, senior manager.

Part of the script, the GSIS lawyer said, was for the Meralco employees attending the meeting to jeer and boo Garcia or any GSIS representative whenever they would try to speak during the stockholders’ meeting.

“We were informed that as early as today [Monday], the employees have been told that they should fill up the venue, Meralco Theater, by as early as 6 to 6:30 a.m. tomorrow [Tuesday]. The beginning of the registration is at 7:30 a.m. So apparently they have told the employees to be there as early as 6 a.m. in order to get the best seats and so as not to give enough seats for the other shareholders who would want to attend,” Elamparo said.

Besides heckling, there was also another alleged plan to deploy the Meralco employees to pose as disgruntled employees or members who would air their grievances against GSIS during the meeting. “They would try to deflect the issue on what is to happen tomorrow by talking about alleged grievances against GSIS,” the GSIS spokesman said.

Elamparo added that these employees would be allowed to bring placards and, as part of their supposed drama, the hecklers will be picked up by Meralco guards. “But instead of taking them to the appropriate authorities, they will be brought to the Meralco Lighthouse and treated to a sumptuous lunch as a ‘talent fee’ for their actions,” she said.

‘Talent fee’

Elamparo added that members of the media will be prohibited from doing live coverage of the Meralco meeting. “I think all of us are interested in what is to happen tomorrow. We are afraid that our voices will be muffled,” she said.

The legality of the alleged actions of Meralco management, according to Elamparo, “will have to be studied” as GSIS’ rights as a shareholder have been “violated from the very beginning,” when the pension fund asked for pertinent information such as a validated list of proxies.

She said the Meralco employees were made to sign proxy forms and claimed that 3,000 of the 4,000 of the proxies validated came from the ranks of Meralco employees. Elamparo noted that the proxy forms were uniform, were color-coded and the wordings were the same. “Obviously they were solicited,” she said.

Proxy forms are documents that state that a shareholder is authorizing somebody else to vote or exercise his right on his behalf during a stockholders’ meeting.

In a text message to The Manila Times, Jesus Francisco, Meralco president, said he has “no knowledge of any such plan.”

“I hope there will be no disturbances. The situation is charged enough. Personally, I am not aware of any such plot,” he added.

A Meralco employee, who refused to be named, told The Times that their bosses “encouraged but not forced” shareholder-employees to come to the meeting at 6 a.m. The employee said there were no instructions to heckle Garcia.

There also was also no “free day” for the Meralco employees, as GSIS had claimed, so that they can attend the meeting, the source said. If the meeting finishes early, he added, the employees would still have to go back to their duties.

TRO on Meralco not true

Meanwhile, Elamparo said the GSIS did not intend to file a temporary restraining order to stop the stockholders’ meeting today as reported earlier because it wants to participate in it. Representatives from the state pension fund confirmed that Garcia would attend the meeting but that he would be “entering a lion’s den” if he did.

She, however, admitted that the state fund was preparing a criminal and civil case against the country’s largest power distributor two weeks ago but this was held in abeyance “hoping that [Meralco] management will somehow listen and would somehow start giving us information.”

Napocor rate cuts don’t trickle down to Meralco’s consumers
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=politics3_may26_2008
By Alena Mae S. Flores

State-owned National Power Corp. has slashed its generation rates by as much as P1.44 per kilowatthour in Luzon between January 2007 and April this year.

“The cut in basic electric rates in the Luzon grid is testimony that we are taking the lead in bringing down power rates, said Cyril del Callar, Napocor president.

“The electric cooperatives, the distressed industries, the private utility companies and the special economic zones have all enjoyed the benefits from the power rate cuts, the latest of which was reflected in the across-the-board rate cut of P0.42 per kWh last April, the Napocor head said.

Generation rate of Napocor plants in Luzon now averages P4.06 per kWh hour as against Manila Electric Co.’s purchase price from its sister independent power producers at an average of P4.44 per kWh.

Napocor said the lowering of its generation cost was not fully felt by customers of Meralco because the latter buys more than 50 percent of its power supply from its own IPPs, according to Del Callar. The reduction felt by the consumers will only be a percentage of the Napocor rate cut.

Meralco has been buying most of its base load power needs from its sister power plants, particularly the Sta. Rita and San Lorenzo natural gas plants in Batangas and Quezon Power Philippines.

Napocor said generated electricity was bought only by Meralco when the supply it bought from its sister companies at times in any given day were not enough to meet the needs of its millions of household, commercial and industrial customers.

Napocor said that Meralco buys its power supply at flat rates that do not change by the hour. But the rates have been going up in tandem with the rise in the prices of oil as the price of locally sourced natural gas those plants use as fuel have been pegged on the global prices of oil.

In its analysis of comparative billing in the Luzon grid, Napocor revealed that Meralco bought from it electricity only during peak hours at a time of use rate averaging P4.38 per kWh from January to March.

In comparison, electric cooperatives in Northern Luzon bought at an average of P3.90 for the same period, those in Central Luzon at P3.42 and in Southern Luzon at P3.93 per kWh. During the same period, Meralco released figures showing that it bought the bulk or more than half of its monthly electricity needs from its sister companies at an average rate of P4.15 per kWh.

Bwisit Nakakabaligtad Sikmura Talaga yang Kasakiman ng mga Lopez!

Bwisit Nakakabaligtad Sikmura Talaga yang Kasakiman ng mga Lopez!

Mas matindi si Garcia, akalain niyo ba namang hindi pa lumalabas ang pensyon ng mga teachers sa GSIS?! Kaya nga umalma mga teachers nang pumutok ang isyung ito...

Lakas flexes muscle to amend power law
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=politics1_may26_2008
By Joyce Pangco Pañares

Ruling party Lakas Christian-Muslim Democrats has directed all its members in Congress to ensure the amendment of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act to bar power distributors like the Manila Electric Co. from passing on its systems losses to consumers and from engaging in cross-ownership with independent power producers.

Lakas spokesman Prospero Pichay said both the House of Representatives and the Senate must work for the amendment of the Epira “especially if there are provisions in the existing law which are onerous to the Filipino consumers.”

“If both the ERC [Energy Regulatory Commission] and Meralco claim that the pass-on mechanism which allows Meralco to pass on to consumers the company’s systems losses is clearly provided for under Epira, then this must be reviewed and amended, or repealed if necessary,” Pichay said in a statement.

The ruling party has at least 90 members in the House, but an alliance with Kampi, Liberals and Nacionalistas gives it majority control of the 238-member Chamber. It will also push for the removal of an existing provision in Epira that allows cross-ownership among power generation and distribution companies, which is against the spirit of the deregulation law, Pichay said.

“The original intent of the deregulation law was to break up the monopolies in the utility sector and open up the market to competition to reduce the costs that consumers pay for power, petroleum products and telecommunications but utility companies somewhat found a way to circumvent the law through a myriad of terms to the detriment of the consuming public,” Pichay said.

According to Ed Malay, spokesman of Lakas chairman emeritus Fidel Ramos, moves are under way to form a lobby group to pressure Congress into barring cross-ownership among power generation and distribution companies and to review Meralco’s franchise.

“If the violations are proven to be true, then we have no other recourse but to push for the revocation of the Meralco franchise,” Malay said.

Records from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market will show Meralco’s habit of buying electricity from its own independent power producers during peak hours, Malay said.

“During peak hours, the price of electricity is at its highest and this has been the biggest factor for the spike in the power bills of consumers in Meralco areas,” Malay said.

Meralco, which is the country’s biggest power distributor, is controlled by the Lopez family which also owns four IPPs—the Sta.Rita and San Lorenzo natural gas plants and the Bauang diesel-fired plant in La Union, and the Mini Hydro Plant in Agusan which have a combined capacity of 1,727 megawatts or equivalent to 11 percent of the country’s electricity requirements.

Earlier, President Arroyo urged Congress to amend Epira to remove the “universal charge” being passed on to consumers and which is used to fund government projects in remote areas.

Last week, Mrs. Arroyo announced the decision of independent power producers to offer 2,000 megawatts in an interim open access scheme in Luzon and Visayas to allow high load factor consumers such as shopping malls to buy electricity without having to go through Meralco or other distributors.

The Philippine Independent Power Producers will file a petition before the Energy Regulatory Commission to allow the interim open access scheme pending the privatization of 70 percent of the assets of the National Power Corp., a requirement in the law before an open access regime can be implemented.

“This is very significant because the industry has voluntarily agreed even before Napocor sells 70 percent of its assets. This is really to boost the competitiveness of the country by bringing down the electricity rates in labor- and power-intensive industries,” the President said.

Before the open access scheme can be implemented, the law requires the privatization of at least 70 percent of the generating capacity of Napocor and the transfer of at least 70 percent of the management contracts over third-party power plants to the private sector.

The New Name of Meralco is now Meral-COSTS

^^ True. :jk: :D

Got a question:
How much does Meralco charge for its resident consumers? They say that MERALCO has one of the most expensive electricity rates in Asia..

Well what about us in Iloilo City?

MERALCO and PECO are somewhat inter-related because both involved the Lopezes.

^^how about the Cachos of Patay Electric:lol: yeah so how much is the rate in MM, ours in iloilo if i remember it right is between 10-12 php/klwhr inclusive of other fees.

I don't know how much the gov't are losing already since this battle between the lopezes started. If this will go on both will be losers as the value of their stakes devaluates. A lot of foreign funds are selling already MER in exchange for AP, sheeesh i should have waited longer...

wonder who's the winner on todays board meeting...

^^ Wala pang balita since this morning...they said that they did not allowed media to cover it....ano na kaya nangyari?

(UPDATE 4) Lopezes keep Meralco

Garcia of GSIS vows it's not over

By Abigail L. Ho
Reuters, Philippine Daily Inquirer (http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20080527-139188/UPDATE-3-Lopezes-keep-Meralco)
First Posted 22:16:00 05/27/2008

MANILA, Philippines --Winston Garcia had one card left, played it and lost. At least for now. Manuel Lopez did not blink and won. At least for now.

At the end of a dramatic, daylong corporate battle on Tuesday, Lopez remained in control of Manila Electric Co. which he heads as chairman.

Garcia, president and general manager of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), vowed during the rowdy annual meeting of Meralco stockholders to pursue his bid to oust Lopez in court.

Nearly 14 hours after the meeting began, results showed that Meralco retained its five seats and the government four. The two others were independent directors Artemio Panganiban and Vicente Panlilio.

Aside from Lopez, the Meralco directors elected were Meralco president Jesus Francisco, Felipe Alfonso, Christian Monsod and Cesar Virata.

The government board members elected aside from Garcia were Bernardino Abes, Daisy Arce and Jeremy Parulan.

There were 14 nominations for the 11-person board. Canvassing for the votes Ernst & Young’s local partner, SGV & Co., took around seven hours.

"I feel great because we won and that is how it should be," said Oscar Lopez, chairman of First Philippine Holdings Corp, a holding firm of the Lopez family, which owns 33 percent of Meralco.

"It was a diabolical plan of Winston," he told Reuters.

Armed with a "cease-and-desist order" from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Garcia had sought to stop the counting of proxy votes, accusing the Lopezes of "rigging" the process.

"They have a valid complaint lodged with the SEC challenging the proxies solicited by certain members," Hubert Guevara, a director of compliance and enforcement at the SEC, told reporters.

The move disrupted the meeting, but after an hour and a half of consultations by the Meralco board, assistant corporate secretary Anthony Rosete announced that the SEC order was "null and void."

He said the SEC order did not carry a docket number to show when it was filed and officially received, had no official seal and was only signed by an officer in charge and not by the entire commission sitting en banc.

"This is the last recourse to stop the election," said Oscar Lopez, chair of First Philippine Holdings Corp., flagship firm of the Lopez family, which owns 33 percent of Meralco and controls the utility.

The family patriarch said Garcia's move was a "low blow" because the GSIS chief even wanted to invalidate the Lopezes' ballots.

True to form, the atmosphere at Meralco Theater was charged with electricity—none of which came from any of the distribution utility's power lines.

Hours before the 9 a.m. meeting, the Meralco compound was already crawling with people, many of them employees who also held shares in the company.

In the hour leading to the start of the meeting, lines of stockholders snaked in front of designated registration tables in the Meralco main building lobby, eager to take part in what could be a battle royal between Garcia and the Meralco management.

Most of the members of the current Meralco board occupied the front row of the center aisle seats, with Lopez and Garcia conspicuously ignoring each other despite their adjacent seats.

An unexpected twist came immediately after the opening ceremonies when Guevara stepped up to one of the microphones and read the order seeking to prevent the counting of the votes of six Meralco shareholders plus those of the proxies solicited in their name.

During the recess that followed the announcement of the SEC order, Garcia told reporters that the Lopez family and its allies in Meralco were "trying to put in manufactured proxies."

"They never sent us the list of the validated proxies and the total number of votes. Management solicited proxies without regard to certain rules and regulations that should have been followed. They haven't been very transparent," he said.

"We're very apprehensive of what will happen here. They're trying to put in illegal proxies. These meetings usually have an attendance of just 70-75 percent (of shareholders), but now we have around 86 percent and an unusually high number of proxies," Garcia added.

He said Meralco management should have relinquished control of the stockholders meeting and let the SEC assume jurisdiction over it, including the election for the new board of directors.

Not to be deterred, Rosete and the incumbent board members came out of a conference with their lawyers armed with a statement that obviously shocked both Garcia and Guevara.

"After a review of the order, we deem such order null and void," Rosete said, pointing out 10 reasons for this conclusion.

He said the order did not have a docket number, date and the official seal of the SEC. It was also signed by just one commissioner, Jesus Martinez.

"Upon verification, we have received information that this order was issued without the benefit of a commission meeting, and that we are not aware of any complaint filed with the Compliance and Enforcement Division of the SEC," Rosete said.

He added that Martinez, although designated officer in charge in the absence of SEC Chair Fe Barin, had "no authority to issue this order on his own."

The fact that Martinez was the only signatory to the order, Rosete said, made it violative of due process as Martinez, in effect, "predetermined the validity of the GSIS proxies without proper investigation."

Rosete said neither Meralco nor any of its directors were not given notice of the order, denying them the opportunity to be heard—another violation of due process.

Also, since the matter between the GSIS and the Lopezes of Meralco was an intra-corporate matter, the regular courts and not the SEC had jurisdiction over it, he said.

He also said the GSIS was guilty of forum shopping as it also filed a similar complaint with the Pasay City Regional Trial Court. A GSIS lawyer later said that the move before the court was subsequently dropped.

Rosete then declared that Meralco would push through with the election despite the SEC order.

While the SEC noted Meralco's objections to its order, Guevara said the company's lawyers should look more closely at the Securities Regulation Code, particularly at the rules on proxy validation.

"You may proceed with the election, but subject to the decision of the SEC at a later date," he said.

Garcia stood up, grabbed a microphone and called the meeting "bogus," as it was held "in defiance of an SEC order."

In a press conference later, Meralco regulatory management head Monico Jacob said pushing through with the election was "the prudent thing to do so our stockholders will not be kept in limbo."

"It's only defiance (to the SEC order) if it's a valid, lawful order. But since it isn't valid and lawful, this is about protecting the right of the company and of the stockholders."

Asked if the results of Tuesday's election would end all the controversy over who should be at the helm of Meralco, he said: "We're hoping that people will come to their senses and this will settle things. But we're prepared for any eventuality."

Garcia has charged Meralco with inefficiency and a lack of transparency that allowed Meralco to forge "sweetheart deals" with Lopez-owned generating firms resulting in rates he described as the highest in Asia next to Japan.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's allies in the Senate and the House of Representatives followed suit, threatening to revoke and divide the Meralco franchise covering 60 percent of the nation's power consumers.

Some analysts and commentators say Ms Arroyo instigated the GSIS campaign to silence the Lopez-owned radio-television network ABS-CBN for its hard-hitting stand against government corruption. But Palace officials and Garcia have denied any government involvement in the fight with the Lopezes.

Philippine electricity rates are among the highest in Asia due to expensive deals with private power producers, the country's reliance on imported oil to generate electricity and widespread illegal tapping.

Meralco says it has to pay high prices for power bought from all generating firms, including those belonging to state-run National Power Corp., whose aging facilities mean it costs more to produce energy.

The Lopezes, one of the Philippines' most powerful dynasties, also own two power generation plants and geothermal firm Philippine National Oil Co.-Energy Development Corp.

Meralco shares were unchanged at P63 on Tuesday. The company's stock has dropped nearly 29 percent since late April when GSIS started its moves against management.

Watched the news earlier...
Meow meow aw aw ang Meralco...Seems that there is a bitter fight between GSIS and the Lopezes.

^^ang magnanakaw galit sa kapwa magnanakaw

^^ Well, sabi nga ng isang komentaryo sa radyo...
"Uso naman ang nakawan ngayon, basta moderate the greed lang." :D

Anyway, economic speculators are worried about this scenario.
For the consumers, that fight is nothing not unless that would result to lowering the cost of electricity.

A fight the public must win
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may27_2008
In the wake of the rice, food and oil crises where prices are going through the roof, and despite people calling on the Manila Electric Co. to lower its power, presidential hopefuls have been busy laying the groundwork for 2010.
* * *
There’s for instance, Senate President Manny Villar. Theinitial public offering of his real estate empire generated P10 billion. It is said that out of that amount, he’s setting aside P6 billion as his war chest for 2010. My gulay, Manny seems to be a true believer of the Golden Rule—he who has the gold rules!
And he’s making his political base the eight million migrant workers, whose relatives back home number into the millions as well.
Senator Mar Roxas has also been busy trying to project himself as a “man of the masses,” with his “Mr. Palengke” image. He, too, is said to be banking on the Araneta and Roxas billions. Don’t forget that if he can get the Cebuano and Ilonggo votes, that’s certainly a big base.
Personally, Mar has the necessary credentials to pursue whatever economic advantage the Arroyo administration has achieved. And this is what separated Manny from Mar. While Villar may have the money and the masa, big business and the elite are wary of him. While Mar has business and industry behind him, he’ll have to work harder on generating support from the lower C, D and E classes.
How about Senator Loren Legarda? If she can get the support of San Miguel top honcho Danding Cojuangco, the “godfather” of Nationalist People’s Coalition, she may have a chance against Manny and Mar. Her distinct advantage is that she’s consistently no. 1 among the senatorial who plan to run for president in 2010. If the traditional poll contributors see her as a winner, funding won’t be a problem.
On the other hand, the plan of Vice President Noli de Castro remains a big question mark. Will he be the administration candidate? Will the projected Lakas-Kampi merger go for him? It may still be too early in the game, but Noli has got to have his campaign going already.
They say that Senator Chiz Escudero could be the dark horse for 2010. The problem is that he’s comparatively still too wet behind the ears compared to Manny, Mar, Loren and Noli. But, don’t discount the fact that over 50 percent of 2010 voters are from the ages of 18 to 35. Santa Banana, if the Americans have Barack Obama, why not Chiz Escudero?
* * *
There are doubts if the so-called showdown between Government Service Insurance System president and chief executive officer Winston Garcia and the Lopezes at today’s annual stockholders meeting of Meralco will produce anything, not even calls for changing the Lopez management. Still, the fight of the over four million Meralco consumers and the public as a whole for Meralco to lower its power and electricity rates is a battle that the people must win at the end.
I say this because there’s an effort on the part of the Lopezes to make the calls for Meralco to power its rates and stop all the scams of Meralco’s management with their “pass-on” practices a fight of President Arroyo against the Lopezes. This is not the case.
The idea of the Lopezes obviously is to project the Palace’s calls for lower rates as an attempt of Malacañang to make the Lopez-owned radio and television giant ABS-CBN bow to the wishes of the President, an issue that is both irrelevant and non-sequitur.
Otherwise, knowing the Lopezes and their history of fighting presidents to preserve their power, they will get back at Malacañang as they had done in the past.
In fact, the Lopezes have already thrown the gauntlet when Lopez “godfather” Oscar Lopez said that they had been threatened before by presidents, like Marcos, but they survived them. To the Lopezes public good and interest is no matter to them. They want to remain in power, and their hold in Meralco means power (no pun intended).
Santa Banana, this means that by hook or by crook, the Lopezes will not bow down to Malacañang, nor to public interest. They also believe in the Golden Rule—he who has the gold rule.
* * *
In the spirit of fair play, I dedicated column space last week so that Meralco could air its side regarding controversies surrounding calls for Meralco to lower its rates.
Elpi Cuna, who was a student of mine at the Ateneo, is Meralco’s vice president for corporate communications, and he tried to answer some tough questions on the matter of deposits and refunds. But, many readers tell me that they are still perplexed regarding this issue.
While Elpi explained that mandatory meter deposits ceased to be collected and were supposed to be refunded when the Magna Carta for Residential Electricity and Open Access Rules was implemented on the 29th of July 2004, it still remains a mystery to consumers (including myself), why said meter deposits have not been reimbursed until today. Meralco claims that the Energy Regulatory Commission caused the delay because the agency did not release the final draft on refund guidelines until May 8 of this year.
Santa Banana, would you wait for four long years for someone to get back to you? Four years? That’s the same span of time it takes a helpless infant grandchild to develop into a bright and talkative nursery student with a 1,500-word vocabulary. Four years is a how long it takes a wide-eyed high school graduate to earn a college degree and prepare himself for the workforce.
It’s absolutely mind-boggling to me, how Meralco could quietly wait so long for a set of guidelines that would enable (?) it to return to millions of customers, including myself, what they rightfully deserve in the first place. Wouldn’t the best interest of one’s valued customers prompt an initiative to expedite matters? Don’t tell me the great finance team that has made Meralco the numero uno company in the country in terms of sales, cannot among themselves, figure out a rudimentary refund system.
Now that the allegedly errant ERC has submitted the approved rules and procedures to Meralco, should we expect another four-year wait before customers receive their elusive refunds, if any at all?
* * *
Santa Banana, don’t hold your breath!
In case you missed last week’s column, according to Meralco, the same Magna Carta stipulates that customers are required to pay a bill deposit when applying electric service. The obligatory bill deposit is supposed to serve as a guarantee payment of monthly statements in case one fails to pay his electricity bill.
This would seem fair to me, if indeed Meralco applied this deposit as compensation for any outstanding accounts. Instead, if you have the misfortune of being past due on your electric bill, you can count on promptly being served a disconnection notice.
If you still fail to cover your tab within seven days, bring out the candles and matches only will Meralco summarily cut off electricity to your home, they will refused to restore power until your bill is paid in full, regardless of the fact that you already paid a bill deposit in the past, precisely to avoid such situations.
* * *
As if the misuse of bill deposits and the delay of meter refunds were not enough, Meralco now has the gall to suggest that due to another cause in the infamous Magna Carta, a spending adjustment in these questionable bill deposits may actually cancel out any meter deposits customers may be expecting.
The 2004 charter supposedly states that instead of a flat rate charge for bill deposits, the amount should be updated based on the previous 12 months of actual consumption of each customer. This means that the higher a household’s electric usage, the higher the bill deposit to be collected from that home.
My gulay, again as I have asked before: On whose account were these trust funds deposited—customers or the Lopezes? And how about interests? Who has been getting them—customers or the Lopezes? And who has been using them?
As an ad stated: To the Lopez-controlled Meralco—moderate your grid

Garcia discloses gameplan when he takes over utility
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/may/28/yehey/top_stories/20080528top4.html
By Likha Cuevas-Miel, Reporter

It’s not over until it’s over for the chief of the government pension fund.

Expressing confidence that he will win in the end, Winston Garcia, the president and general manager of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), laid out his gameplan on his planned takeover of the management of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) during a briefing late Tuesday afternoon at Crowne Plaza Galleria in Pasig City.

Garcia said he intends to bring down the cost of electricity by eliminating “inefficiencies” within Meralco, the country’s biggest power distributor, and correct the “mismanagement” of the firm by its current corporate heads by changing the composition of the board.

“Today is the beginning of the end of Mr. Manolo Lopez [Meralco chairman]. I see light at the end of the tunnel because I always believe whatever defiance Meralco had shown this morning will not last long,” the GSIS chief added.

Part of his plans, he said, is to make Meralco source 65 percent of its electricity from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and 35 percent from independent power producers, or IPPs. The utility, at present, gets 55 percent of its electricity from Lopez-owned IPPs.

“With that strategy, we are confident that we can immediately reduce the cost of electricity per kilowatt-hour from 10 to 20 percent. That will mean deduction in cost of electricity from P1 to P2 per kilowatt hour,” Garcia added.

He said he also intends to streamline Meralco by cutting down the number of personnel that the “bloated” firm has turned into “mere hecklers.” Garcia added that Meralco’s customers had been “paying for the expensive bureaucracy” that the utility’s management is maintaining. He said many of these employees jeered him during the stockholders’ meeting.

According to Garcia, Meralco has only 1,600 rank-and-file employees but keeps 5,000 supervisors and executives. This “untenable” situation, he said, has also caused the high cost of electricity. Besides the high salaries the ordinary employees and executives receive, Garcia also cited that Meralco personnel also have a “generous pension plan” that Meralco customers are also paying for.

“Because of the abusive practices of the management, [Meralco electricity] is 20 [percent] to 30 percent more expensive than that in the rest of the country. This is unforgivable and the sins of the current management must be punished,” the GSIS chief said. Electric cooperatives distribute electricity in the provinces.

Garcia added that he has not yet determined the number of Meralco personnel whom he plans to axe. He reiterated that the roster at present of 12,000 individuals, including casual workers, cannot be sustained.

He said he will cite Anthony Rosete, acting corporate secretary for the Meralco stockholders’ meeting, in contempt for ignoring a cease-and-desist order from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Garcia added that accounting firm SGV will be held in contempt if it recognizes the contested proxy votes and defies the restraining order. SGV was designated by Meralco to count and tabulate the votes from Tuesday’s stockholders’ meeting.

If lopezes can survive the tough days with the marcos era, i doubted that they'll lost here in this another battle with the gov't.

Well, sabi nga ng isang komentaryo sa radyo...
"Uso naman ang nakawan ngayon, basta moderate the greed lang."

It's like saying, 'one hand gets and the other hand gives'. Means, you get something for yourself but see to it that you give something for the people also. By this your corruption is bit justified and no one would really take notice. win win solution di ba, happy na ang tao, happy ka rin :lol:

what's happening with the lopezes??, I'm starting to lose my respect to that family

what's happening with the lopezes??, I'm starting to lose my respect to that family

So ibig sabihin Kuya Kyle kampi ka kay Garcia? E kung si Garcia po ang uupo sa Meralco, mas malala kasi GSIS nga po wala na kaming makuhang pensyon e... not to mention paiikut-ikutin ka pa nila...

So ibig sabihin Kuya Kyle kampi ka kay Garcia? E kung si Garcia po ang uupo sa Meralco, mas malala kasi GSIS nga po wala na kaming makuhang pensyon e... not to mention paiikut-ikutin ka pa nila...

well its not who's whose side here, it more of an opinion. we ilonggos tend to comment on our neighbors actions, especially if it is already out of the ordinary. Lopezes are not the type to squabble just like that, they have a long history of running businesses quite right.

Anyway, I myself come to think of it, something that is part of your family, it maybe a property of memoirs, or a very special token, and somebody wants to grab it from you, definitely it will bring out the monster inside you.

I do understand where Lopezes are coming from.

For Garcia, well, he needs tyo clean his own backyard first.

well its not who's whose side here, it more of an opinion. we ilonggos tend to comment on our neighbors actions, especially if it is already out of the ordinary. Lopezes are not the type to squabble just like that, they have a long history of running businesses quite right.

Anyway, I myself come to think of it, something that is part of your family, it maybe a property of memoirs, or a very special token, and somebody wants to grab it from you, definitely it will bring out the monster inside you.

I do understand where Lopezes are coming from.

For Garcia, well, he needs tyo clean his own backyard first.

Agree!!! :okay:

I watched the news last night, he arrogantly shout at the shareholders. my goodness, my uncle(a shareholder) called my mom, and he even "like" to slap Garcia squarely to the face. Who the H*LL is he, shouting and claiming everybody there are "employees". Corporately we dont call a shareholder an employee, if theres a stockholders meeting, even an employee of a said company have shares, in a meeting they are not employees anymore, they are shareholders.

About the SEC, gosh, we dont release orders without an order date, without necessary deliberations from the existing board. Meaning, we dont release orders overnight. Theres a process.

...Basta ibaba dapat ng Meralco ang singil sa koryente....and I dont care about their corporate intramural...:bash:

...Basta ibaba dapat ng Meralco ang singil sa koryente....and I dont care about their corporate intramural...:bash:

Kuya jpdm, ano po ang masasabi ninyo kay Garcia? We know that his own backyard is dirty...

Barrera Marquez, the plan of Garcia on how to bring down the cost of electricity is only logical:

1. Garcia said he intends to bring down the cost of electricity by eliminating “inefficiencies” within Meralco, the country’s biggest power distributor, and correct the “mismanagement” of the firm by its current corporate heads by changing the composition of the board.

2. To make Meralco source 65 percent of its electricity from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and 35 percent from independent power producers, or IPPs. The utility, at present, gets 55 percent of its electricity from Lopez-owned IPPs.

With that strategy, we are confident that we can immediately reduce the cost of electricity per kilowatt-hour from 10 to 20 percent. That will mean deduction in cost of electricity from P1 to P2 per kilowatt hour,” Garcia added

3. To streamline Meralco by cutting down the number of personnel that the “bloated” firm has turned into “mere hecklers.” Garcia added that Meralco’s customers had been “paying for the expensive bureaucracy” that the utility’s management is maintaining. He said many of these employees jeered him during the stockholders’ meeting. Meralco has only 1,600 rank-and-file employees but keeps 5,000 supervisors and executives. This “untenable” situation, he said, has also caused the high cost of electricity. Besides the high salaries the ordinary employees and executives receive, Garcia also cited that Meralco personnel also have a “generous pension plan” that Meralco customers are also paying for.

(Only a stupid corporation retains more supervisors than rank & file employees)


Garcia discloses gameplan when he takes over utility
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/may/28/yehey/top_stories/20080528top4.html
By Likha Cuevas-Miel, Reporter

It’s not over until it’s over for the chief of the government pension fund.

Expressing confidence that he will win in the end, Winston Garcia, the president and general manager of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), laid out his gameplan on his planned takeover of the management of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) during a briefing late Tuesday afternoon at Crowne Plaza Galleria in Pasig City.

Garcia said he intends to bring down the cost of electricity by eliminating “inefficiencies” within Meralco, the country’s biggest power distributor, and correct the “mismanagement” of the firm by its current corporate heads by changing the composition of the board.

“Today is the beginning of the end of Mr. Manolo Lopez [Meralco chairman]. I see light at the end of the tunnel because I always believe whatever defiance Meralco had shown this morning will not last long,” the GSIS chief added.

Part of his plans, he said, is to make Meralco source 65 percent of its electricity from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and 35 percent from independent power producers, or IPPs. The utility, at present, gets 55 percent of its electricity from Lopez-owned IPPs.

“With that strategy, we are confident that we can immediately reduce the cost of electricity per kilowatt-hour from 10 to 20 percent. That will mean deduction in cost of electricity from P1 to P2 per kilowatt hour,” Garcia added.

He said he also intends to streamline Meralco by cutting down the number of personnel that the “bloated” firm has turned into “mere hecklers.” Garcia added that Meralco’s customers had been “paying for the expensive bureaucracy” that the utility’s management is maintaining. He said many of these employees jeered him during the stockholders’ meeting.

According to Garcia, Meralco has only 1,600 rank-and-file employees but keeps 5,000 supervisors and executives. This “untenable” situation, he said, has also caused the high cost of electricity. Besides the high salaries the ordinary employees and executives receive, Garcia also cited that Meralco personnel also have a “generous pension plan” that Meralco customers are also paying for.

“Because of the abusive practices of the management, [Meralco electricity] is 20 [percent] to 30 percent more expensive than that in the rest of the country. This is unforgivable and the sins of the current management must be punished,” the GSIS chief said. Electric cooperatives distribute electricity in the provinces.

Garcia added that he has not yet determined the number of Meralco personnel whom he plans to axe. He reiterated that the roster at present of 12,000 individuals, including casual workers, cannot be sustained.

He said he will cite Anthony Rosete, acting corporate secretary for the Meralco stockholders’ meeting, in contempt for ignoring a cease-and-desist order from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Garcia added that accounting firm SGV will be held in contempt if it recognizes the contested proxy votes and defies the restraining order. SGV was designated by Meralco to count and tabulate the votes from Tuesday’s stockholders’ meeting.

It's like saying, 'one hand gets and the other hand gives'. Means, you get something for yourself but see to it that you give something for the people also. By this your corruption is bit justified and no one would really take notice. win win solution di ba, happy na ang tao, happy ka rin :lol:

Well, ganyan na talaga sa Pilipinas...Iba't ibang uri ng magnanakaw, may petty theft, estafa, hanggang big fish...:lol:

But this is a sad reality that we have now...But that doesn't mean that it would be the end of changing our social attitudes. May pag-asa pa.

...Basta ibaba dapat ng Meralco ang singil sa koryente....and I dont care about their corporate intramural...:bash:

Same here...In the end, the consumers would only want one thing: lower down power rates...Whosoever the one who manages MERALCO should have a social responsibility.

No, thats not how you do it!!!! Just lowering rates is not gonna do it, wanna know how you can guarantee a lower power rate? Exactly what the US government did to Ma Bell I think in the 70s or 80s. Since Ma Bell was a monopoly the US government split it up into separate companies. That way there is competition.
So what you need to do is split Meralco into two companies to allow for competition, that is the only way to guarantee low rates. When I first moved to the pihlippines, pldt internet for business for my internet was about 10k a month, now that there is a lot of competition, that same connection for twice the speed is 4k a month. Competition is the ONLY way to guarantee low rates!!!!

Balita ko mababa raw ang presyo ng kuryente noong panahon ng Martial Law kaya raw uso brownout. Parang tama nga e, if you pay more, you receive more in electricity. Better pay high electric bills rather than suffer from blackouts...

Now that is only an opinion, and I still want to see Meralco bills go down...

^^ Hmmm, like I remembered what they also did for MWSS...Splitting it into 2, Manila Water and Maynilad.

[quote=barrera_marquez;21175037]Balita ko mababa raw ang presyo ng kuryente noong panahon ng Martial Law kaya raw uso brownout. Parang tama nga e, if you pay more, you receive more in electricity. Better pa

Pero masakit sa bulsa at sa dibdib ang nagbabayad ka ng mataas na presyo ng kuryente pagkatapos magmimistulang kabaret or christmas lights serbisyo ng kuryente...

Ito ang nangyayari sa amin sa Iloilo City. Paying premium for the generation charge (which majority comes from Lopez-built power plants of Panay Power Co.) tapos patay patay pa...

[quote=barrera_marquez;21175037]Balita ko mababa raw ang presyo ng kuryente noong panahon ng Martial Law kaya raw uso brownout. Parang tama nga e, if you pay more, you receive more in electricity. Better pa

Pero masakit sa bulsa at sa dibdib ang nagbabayad ka ng mataas na presyo ng kuryente pagkatapos magmimistulang kabaret or christmas lights serbisyo ng kuryente...

Ito ang nangyayari sa amin sa Iloilo City. Paying premium for the generation charge (which majority comes from Lopez-built power plants of Panay Power Co.) tapos patay patay pa...

Problema talaga yung sa inyo kasi kulang kayo sa power plants... if that trend continues, then the power companies at your area don't have the right to raise electric bills since you are paying for something that isn't worth it...

No, thats not how you do it!!!! Just lowering rates is not gonna do it, wanna know how you can guarantee a lower power rate? Exactly what the US government did to Ma Bell I think in the 70s or 80s. Since Ma Bell was a monopoly the US government split it up into separate companies. That way there is competition.
So what you need to do is split Meralco into two companies to allow for competition, that is the only way to guarantee low rates. When I first moved to the pihlippines, pldt internet for business for my internet was about 10k a month, now that there is a lot of competition, that same connection for twice the speed is 4k a month. Competition is the ONLY way to guarantee low rates!!!!

Tama!!! :okay: Pero instead of splitting Meralco, remove its monopoly na lang and allow other companies to compete... baka kasi may tumilapon at mawalan ng kuryente ang isang bahagi ng Maynila...

Baka siguro ang unang kalaban ng Meralco kapag natanggal na ang monopoly nila e GMA Power/GMA Electric Company o GERALCO... na hawak ng mga Gozons (CEO of GMA 7)

"Competition keeps the prices down..."

-Energy secretary Angelo Reyes

[quote=habagatcentral1;21175141]

Problema talaga yung sa inyo kasi kulang kayo sa power plants... if that trend continues, then the power companies at your area don't have the right to raise electric bills since you are paying for something that isn't worth it...

Sec. Reyes himself apologized in the Visayan public because of the lack of preparation from the part of national government that is why we are experiencing lack of power. Di daw nila masyadong naimprove ang power sector ng Visayas. Given that Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo and the rest of the Visayas is having an increased demand in electricity.

Medyo mahirap din ng konti ang transmission sa Kabisayaan dahil tubig ang humihiwalay sa kanila, unlike here in Luzon or Mindanao which they could just place their transmission lines anywhere possible. TRANSCO just uprated the Panay-Negros line in order to improve further the transmission of power.

However, environmentalists and some of the activists say otherwise...Walang krisis sa kuryente sa Visayas at mali ang estimation ng DOE. Isa lang daw itong paraan para magpatayo ng mga power plants.

Kuya jpdm, ano po ang masasabi ninyo kay Garcia? We know that his own backyard is dirty...

Again, Im not going to comment on GSIS or Garcia..dahil baka humaba basta ayoko patakaran nya sa GSIS kasi yung funds ng GSIS ini-invest nya sa abroad instead dito..hanap tayo ng hanap ng FDI bakit hindi invest sa PInas..:bash:

Anyway, Im after the lowering of power rates....If the government is serious, it has all the tools to do it...

ganun lang kasimple..

..NAPOCOR, ERC, Dept of Energy, SEC, Dept of Finance....sus wag sa high profile na board of director election..yan ang gusto nila Lopez..media mileage..ayun tuloy si Garcia pa masama...

...hay naku..government...

...government..if you want to cut..cut cleanly...

[quote=barrera_marquez;21175274]

Sec. Reyes himself apologized in the Visayan public because of the lack of preparation from the part of national government that is why we are experiencing lack of power. Di daw nila masyadong naimprove ang power sector ng Visayas. Given that Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo and the rest of the Visayas is having an increased demand in electricity.

Medyo mahirap din ng konti ang transmission sa Kabisayaan dahil tubig ang humihiwalay sa kanila, unlike here in Luzon or Mindanao which they could just place their transmission lines anywhere possible. TRANSCO just uprated the Panay-Negros line in order to improve further the transmission of power.

However, environmentalists and some of the activists say otherwise...Walang krisis sa kuryente sa Visayas at mali ang estimation ng DOE. Isa lang daw itong paraan para magpatayo ng mga power plants.

Hindi ba nila nararanasan ang brownout diyan Kuya? Geothermal power is clean... much cleaner than coal or natural gas and it keeps me wondering why they don't want it... tourist attraction nga sa Bicol ang mga geothermal plants nila...

Barrera Marquez, the plan of Garcia on how to bring down the cost of electricity is only logical:

1. Garcia said he intends to bring down the cost of electricity by eliminating “inefficiencies” within Meralco, the country’s biggest power distributor, and correct the “mismanagement” of the firm by its current corporate heads by changing the composition of the board.

2. To make Meralco source 65 percent of its electricity from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) and 35 percent from independent power producers, or IPPs. The utility, at present, gets 55 percent of its electricity from Lopez-owned IPPs.

With that strategy, we are confident that we can immediately reduce the cost of electricity per kilowatt-hour from 10 to 20 percent. That will mean deduction in cost of electricity from P1 to P2 per kilowatt hour,” Garcia added

3. To streamline Meralco by cutting down the number of personnel that the “bloated” firm has turned into “mere hecklers.” Garcia added that Meralco’s customers had been “paying for the expensive bureaucracy” that the utility’s management is maintaining. He said many of these employees jeered him during the stockholders’ meeting. Meralco has only 1,600 rank-and-file employees but keeps 5,000 supervisors and executives. This “untenable” situation, he said, has also caused the high cost of electricity. Besides the high salaries the ordinary employees and executives receive, Garcia also cited that Meralco personnel also have a “generous pension plan” that Meralco customers are also paying for.

(Only a stupid corporation retains more supervisors than rank & file employees)

:applause: Odyssey, well said! Imagine maintaining 5,000 supervisors and executives and only 1,600 rank and file employees? Wow, a record for inefficiency!

Tama!!! :okay: Pero instead of splitting Meralco, remove its monopoly na lang and allow other companies to compete... baka kasi may tumilapon at mawalan ng kuryente ang isang bahagi ng Maynila...

Baka siguro ang unang kalaban ng Meralco kapag natanggal na ang monopoly nila e GMA Power/GMA Electric Company o GERALCO... na hawak ng mga Gozons (CEO of GMA 7)

"Competition keeps the prices down..."

-Energy secretary Angelo Reyes

Splitting into two is the most cost effective than creating a new electric distribution company which takes time a lot of time and money. Though entry of a new distribution company should be welcome in the long run to give options to villages, industries, and malls what power distribution company to choose.
Splitting into two means to divide the management like what happened to Nawasa. This is a better option because it is faster to implement, will give more focus to the area covered plus price competition between the two. But I think we need to have at least 10 power distributors in Luzon, four of which located in MM.

Splitting into two is the most cost effective than creating a new electric distribution company which takes time a lot of time and money. Though entry of a new distribution company should be welcome in the long run to give options to villages, industries, and malls what power distribution company to choose.
Splitting into two means to divide the management like what happened to Nawasa. This is a better option because it is faster to implement, will give more focus to the area covered plus price competition between the two. But I think we need to have at least 10 power distributors in Luzon, four of which located in MM.

Ok... inaalala ko lang kasi baka magka-aberya yung isang kumpanya at matuluyan yung mga lugar na hawak nila...

Aha, did you check if similar problems such as unclaimed pension ,death etc. did not happen before the term of Garcia? I am not here to defend him because I don't work for government and I don't know him either. But, the issue is Meralco. He can shake Meralco and the objectives are very noble, to lower the cost of electricity wherein Meralco failed to do so. Did you read the post in Power thread by Odyssey? It detailed the inefficiencies of Meralco.

Yes, I know that pero para naman kasing kung insultuhin natin (including GSIS) ang Meralco e parang napakasama naman nila... dati uso brownout panahon ni Cory, ngayon hindi na masyado... mabuti pa ngayon kahit papaano...

Ang inefficiencies na tinutukoy ni Kuya Odyssey is right. There is really an inefficiency in Meralco. Pero GSIS is also inefficient. That is why there are two camps (one supporting Lopezes and the other one opposing them) protesting outside the Meralco theater. Kailangan talagang linisin muna ni Garcia ang bakuran niya bago siya umangal sa ibang bakuran...

Yung sinasabi naman ni Kuya Odyssey na 65% na kukuning kuryente sa NAPOCOR e pwede sana. Yun nga lang, isa rin ang NAPOCOR sa mga kumpanyang mataas maningil. Kaya imposible ang 65% sa ngayon, maybe kung bumaba ang singil ng NAPOCOR...

Ok wala akong reklamo sa third, tama talaga iyon... imbis na supervisor ang i-hire dapat field personnel at heavy equipment para mabilis mai-restore ang services ng kuryente kapag nagka-bagyo (remember Milenyo? May ibang bahagi ng Manila 1 week walang kuryente)

Tingin ko lang sa isyung ito ng Meralco, parang nawawala ang pinaka-focus nito na mapababa ang singil sa kuryente e... parang mas nauuwi ito sa labanan ng Meralco at GSIS. Halata naman hindi ba mga ate at kuya?

[quote=habagatcentral1;21175385]

Hindi ba nila nararanasan ang brownout diyan Kuya? Geothermal power is clean... much cleaner than coal or natural gas and it keeps me wondering why they don't want it... tourist attraction nga sa Bicol ang mga geothermal plants nila...

Ramdam na ramdam, like may mga araw na makailang brownout. Yes Leyte and Negros is a rich resource of geothermal energy yet the national government didn't focus well on developing these technologies. Geothermal acquisition may take years as it needs testing of sites of sources which will generate electricity to at least a hundred years.

And since the need for power is immediate, one of the ways which the Visayas can cope up is to make coal power plants which are easier to construct although health and environmental risks are quite high unlike geothermal.

[quote=barrera_marquez;21175508]

Ramdam na ramdam, like may mga araw na makailang brownout. Yes Leyte and Negros is a rich resource of geothermal energy yet the national government didn't focus well on developing these technologies. Geothermal acquisition may take years as it needs testing of sites of sources which will generate electricity to at least a hundred years.

And since the need for power is immediate, one of the ways which the Visayas can cope up is to make coal power plants which are easier to construct although health and environmental risks are quite high unlike geothermal.

Sino po ba Kuya Habs ang may sala kung bakit hindi po matayo-tayo ang geothermal plant diyan? Tanging Leyte lang po ang may surplus electricity sa Visayas... at ang mga environmentalists po, what makes them say na hindi po totoo na may power crisis sa Visayas? Didn't they feel it? At dahil na rin po siguro sa kade-deny nila, magtatayo po tuloy ng isang maruming coal-fired power plant diyan... mas marumi po ang coal sa geothermal... hindi ba?

Again, Im not going to comment on GSIS or Garcia..dahil baka humaba basta ayoko patakaran nya sa GSIS kasi yung funds ng GSIS ini-invest nya sa abroad instead dito...hanap tayo ng hanap ng FDI bakit hindi invest sa PInas..:bash:

Anyway, Im after the lowering of power rates....If the government is serious, it has all the tools to do it...

ganun lang kasimple..

..NAPOCOR, ERC, Dept of Energy, SEC, Dept of Finance....sus wag sa high profile na board of director election..yan ang gusto nila Lopez..media mileage..ayun tuloy si Garcia pa masama...

...hay naku..government...

...government..if you want to cut..cut cleanly...

I strongly agree with your statement in bold. Parang hindi ata alam ni Garcia na kulang tayo sa investments, lalo na sa stock market. sana man lang pinasok nya ang pera sa P6 para naman gumalaw to kasi walang kabuhay buhay eh kasi nga kulang talaga sa investor. Sino bang mag iinvest eh sariling pera nga natin nilalabas natin ini invest sa ibang bansa,, imported mentality...:bash: If we're not confident with our own backyard how much more the foreign investors :ohno:

I strongly agree with your statement in bold. Parang hindi ata alam ni Garcia na kulang tayo sa investments, lalo na sa stock market. sana man lang pinasok nya ang pera sa P6 para naman gumalaw to kasi walang kabuhay buhay eh kasi nga kulang talaga sa investor. Sino bang mag iinvest eh sariling pera nga natin nilalabas natin ini invest sa ibang bansa,, imported mentality...:bash: If we're not confident with our own backyard how much more the foreign investors :ohno:

^^

..Indeed. kaya hindi ako dapat sisihin ng pamahalaan bilang isang ordinaryong mamamayan na maduda lagi sa mga kilos nila. Kung totoo na gusto nila, kayang kaya. Ang gobyerno regulator pa rin so kaya pa ring paluin sa puwet mga erring private firms lalo utility firm kasi maraming tao at negosyo naaapektuhan...

..Garcia should inves the billion dollars in GSIS in Philippine companies such as Petron. Sayang, there was a chance to give back the largest oil company in the Philippines -Petron- to the philippines.. but the government through PNOC blew it...daming pera ng GSIS ngayon invest ni Garcia sa stocks daw sa ibang overseas bourses.....dito nga nanghihingalo ang PSE e....

...They better do it because nakaabang ang tao....pinaasa ni PGMA ang mga tao na ibaba ng Meralco......

^^

..Indeed. kaya hindi ako dapat sisihin ng pamahalaan bilang isang ordinaryong mamamayan na maduda lagi sa mga kilos nila. Kung totoo na gusto nila, kayang kaya. Ang gobyerno regulator pa rin so kaya pa ring paluin sa puwet mga erring private firms lalo utility firm kasi maraming tao at negosyo naaapektuhan...

..Garcia should inves the billion dollars in GSIS in Philippine companies such as Petron. Sayang, there was a chance to give back the largest oil company in the Philippines -Petron- to the philippines.. but the government through PNOC blew it...daming pera ng GSIS ngayon invest ni Garcia sa stocks daw sa ibang overseas bourses.....dito nga nanghihingalo ang PSE e....

...They better do it because nakaabang ang tao....pinaasa ni PGMA ang mga tao na ibaba ng Meralco......

tama sinabi mo Kuya jpdm... :okay:

Aba, mukha yatang nag-iisa na ang ating mga opinyon ngayon Kuya jpdm, naalala ko pa yung mga debate natin sa globalization thread... well, that's past...

tama sinabi mo Kuya jpdm... :okay:

Aba, mukha yatang nag-iisa na ang ating mga opinyon ngayon Kuya jpdm, naalala ko pa yung mga debate natin sa globalization thread... well, that's past...

..We should always stick on the issues...kung ayaw natin opinyon ng iba..then we can post a better argument without resorting to personal insults...

...kakaiba lang ako sa mga political issues but...

...but im very happy kasi nationalists tayo lahat pagdating sa atin economy..

...Dapat tayo ang nasa economic team ng susunod na administrasyon sa 2010..

..at yayaman ang bansa natin...

Hooray to us!!!:dance:

^^ Hmmm, like I remembered what they also did for MWSS...Splitting it into 2, Manila Water and Maynilad.

Did that create cheaper water? Was there any difference when they did that?
Was water delivery better or the same?

Did that create cheaper water? Was there any difference when they did that?
Was water delivery better or the same?

Kuya kc, magkano po ba ang naging bill ninyo sa tubig last month?

...O ayan, yung ginawa ni Garcia na theatrics sa Meralco stockholder's meeting kinainis ng mga foreign chambers of commerce in the Phillipines...

...banatan na kasi ang Meralco ng government regulators...marami kasing kakampi sina LOpez sa board at sa mga stockholders....

...para bumaba ang koryente....

Manila Times
May 29, 2008
Industry group to stop
Vat on power system loss
Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo

The Federation of Philippine Industries Inc. (FPI) plans to seek court action to stop the government from collecting value added tax imposed on the system loss component of the consumer electricity bills.

Jesus Arranza, FPI president, said the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s contention that it does not have the legal authority to scrap tax collection on system losses has forced the group to go to court.

“The legal opinion of the BIR is not to remove the VAT on the system loss, but that does not preclude us from bringing the matter to court and we will do it,” Arranza said during the power sector stakeholders’ meeting organized by the Department of Energy yesterday.

The FPI, however, has yet to map out how it will proceed with the court action.

System loss, or technically electrical system loss, is the difference between the electricity purchased by electric utilities from power suppliers and the electrical energy they sold.

Such losses, which comprise around 8 percent of consumers’ power bills, arise from pilferage and inefficiency in a power company’s franchise area.

Although FPI finds nothing wrong with the VAT imposition, Arranza said this may have been wrongfully applied on system loss.

In a letter addressed to Finance Secretary Margarito Teves dated May 13, Arranza cited a provision in the National Internal Revenue Code of the Philippines stating that losses sustained “during the taxable year and not compensated for by insurance or other forms of indemnity shall be allowed as deductions.”

The Philippines’ power rates, the second highest in the region next to Japan, are perennially being blamed for the sluggish growth of industries in the country.

However, rising food and energy prices worldwide have started a wildfire of calls from various sectors for ways to lower the country’s power rates, including the removal of taxes imposed on system loss.
-- Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo

Ayan na....

Cut The Power Rate Now !!!!
Nauubos na pasensya ko at Kumukulo ang dugo ko! Tigilan na ang pandaraya sa Kuryente!


The public versus the Lopezes

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=emilJurado_may28_2008

Meralco’s management went on to hold its annual stockholders’ meeting yesterday in spite of a cease and desist order from the Securities and Exchange Commission. That simply proves the point of Government Service Insurance System president and chief executive Winston Garcia that what the Lopezes did was an unmitigated display of arrogance of power. Meralco’s management should be cited for contempt. In effect, it was an illegal meeting.

If there’s one thing that we should not forget, it is that the brouhaha over calls for Meralco to lower its rates (the second highest in Asia, next only to Japan, and certainly the highest nationwide) is that it’s not a fight alone of President Arroyo, although the Lopezes are trying hard to make it appear as though they were being persecuted by the President.

Oscar Lopez of First Philippine Holdings and “godfather” of the Lopez empire after his elder brother, Geny Lopez, passed away, has made it public that Malacañang is after government control of Meralco’s. According to Lopez, the Lopezes will survive it as they did with other presidents who threatened them in the fight over Meralco. But the Palace has denied this.

The truth of the matter, however, is that Meralco fight is between the public and public interest against the Lopezes’ control of Meralco, although the Lopezes and their propagandists and attack dogs are making it appear otherwise. The fight is to end the Lopezes from making Meralco their milking cow at the expense of the public.

The facts speak for themselves. Consider all these: the Lopez-controlled Meralco has been passing everything, including the use of power and electricity by Meralco and its utilities, to its customers. The charges of “systems loss” on our bills as customers are anomalous, to say the least, since pilferages and other systems loss are not our fault as customers.

And then there’s the meter deposits we have paid before it was stopped. Why are our lines disconnected when we fail to pay on time when in fact we have paid advances to Meralco? That trust fund amounting to billions of pesos should have been refunded a long time ago, but it was not. On whose account was the money deposited? Shouldn’t the interest also be given to customers? If the Lopezes used those billions, that’s estafa.

Since the Lopezes buy Meralco power from the three independent power producers they own, isn’t that a conflict of interest? Where do the Lopezes buy their generators, power lines, electric poles and other utilities? From their own firms naturally. That’s also a highway robbery.

Santa Banana, don’t you realize that in spite of the Supreme Court mandate that the billions of pesos that the Lopezes used to pay their income taxes should be refunded to us, only 70 percent so far has been returned to customers?

These and many other sins of the Lopezes who have been laughing themselves all the way to their banks through our blood, sweat and tears, are our fight, not alone the President’s, who must protect public interest.

***

I warned Malacañang earlier that in the wake of the attempt of the Lopezes to divert public attention that the call for Meralco to lower its rates and stop all its shenanigans about “passing on” to millions of its customers what Meralco should pay that this battle for Meralco to lower its rates and stop scams that penalize the public is a fight that must be brought to an end for the sake of public good.

Otherwise, knowing the Lopezes, they will use everything, including their own ABS-CBN to fight President Arroyo back.

The Lopezes, as an oligarchic family, have been used to power and money that have made and unmade presidents. And many presidents before President Arroyo had succumbed before the powerful Lopez empire.

My gulay, it is thus imperative that this fight over Meralco, being a fight between public interest and the Lopezes, must be won. Otherwise, the Lopezes will use all their attack dogs, including ABS-CBN, against Malacañang

P90-M project of DOST to produce electricity from sea current
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/05212008/economy04.html
By Jonathan L. Mayuga
Reporter


THE Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is embarking on a P90-million project to establish a technology-demonstration project on marine current for power generation in the Philippines.

With a P10-million counterpart fund, Undersecretary Graciano Yumul said the Marine Current: Kobold Turbine Project, which is being eyed to generate 150 kilowatts of electricity per hour during its operation, is all systems go.

“We have identified the ideal site and we are now forwarding all communications to Unido [United Nations Industrial Development Organization], which will be funding the project,” Yumul told the BusinessMirror.

Yumul said the Unido will be financing the cost of the project, estimated at P90 million, while the Italian government will provide a grant for the fabrication of the Kobold platform.

The technology provider is Pnti9 de Archimede, which currently runs the Kobold Rubine Power Plant in Sicily, Italy.

The DOST-Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development is taking the lead in the implementation of the project, which Yumul said will help bring down the cost of electricity in the Philippines.

Yumul, who led a site inspection in Sicily, Italy, three weeks ago, said the Tañon Strait, a protected seascape separating the island provinces of Cebu and Negros, has been identified as the priority demonstration site for the marine, current power project, because of its proximity to the shipyard, the electricity grid in Cebu, its ideal marine current, the suitable depth and seabed and its good accessibility to air, sea and land transportation.

Yumul said the construction of the Kobold Turbine Power Plant will start next year and will be completed before the end of the first quarter of 2009.

The turbine, which generates kinetic energy through marine current, will be used to generate potential energy. It will be attached to an underwater grid to a plant in Cebu, which will convert the potential energy to electricity.

Initially, Yumul said the Kobold Turbine Power Plant in the Philippines will be powered by solar energy.

“That’s the beauty of it. The power plant will be operated using solar energy, then the power generated by marine current will be used to generate power for its operation, Yumul said.

According to Yumul, as part of the project’s demonstration, a town in Cebu nearest the power plant will be provided with free electricity to light up the streets.

The pro-type capacity of the Kobold Turbine Power Plant is 1.5 to 3 m/s, which is equivalent to 50 to 100 kilowatts.

Yumul that said once proven effective in generating power that will hopefully bring down electricity costs, the DOST will encourage the private sector to invest in power generation using the technology.

PNOC-EDC shuts down Negros power plant
By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
Friday, May 30, 2008

PNOC-Energy Development Corp. (PNOC-EDC) implemented a temporary shutdown of its geothermal power plant in Bago City, Negros Occidental due to insufficient steam production.

In its disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), PNOC-EDC said the decline in steam output resulted from uncontrolled calcite clogging its geothermal wells. PNOC-EDC is majority owned by the Lopez Group’s First Gen Corp.

Paul A. Aquino, PNOC-EDC president and CEO, said the production wells’ latest steam output is no longer sufficient to generate the specified minimum operating load for the power plant.

“The decline in steam production was assessed to be due to the clogging of the wells by calcite minerals found in the current geothermal field,” he said.

Aquino said the clogging prevents the wells from releasing the steam from its source underneath the earth. Calcification is a technical problem that is not attributable to or within the reasonable control of the company.

The PNOC-EDC official said the company is currently looking for an immediate solution to the problem.

“EDC has carried out all reasonable and appropriate scientific and engineering effort in an attempt to remedy or alleviate the problems encountered,” he said.

“Based on the advice of the equipment supplier, it is no longer possible to operate the plant because continued operation will cause damage to the steam turbine generator.”

But Aquino said the shutdown is expected to last for only around nine months. During this period, EDC will address the problem.

“To achieve a meaningful improvement in steam production, we need to shut down the entire steam production facility.”

He said during the specified period, maintenance works on the individual production wells will also be undertaken to completely clean out the calcite minerals clogging them.

However, he stressed that the work over of the existing steamfield will only result in a maximum sustainable capability of 15 to 18 megawatts (MW) due to the small area of operation.

In order to make the project viable in the medium to long term, it will be necessary to enter the Mt. Kanlaon buffer zone in order to recover the capacity of the original steam supply of 49 MW.

He said this move would also avert a projected power crisis in Negros Occidental by 2010.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Business&p=49&type=2&sec=27&aid=2008052911

DOE and ERC kilos na!!! Ibaba ang koryente!!!:bash:

Oh by the way:
PECO of Iloilo City charges P11.50 per KwH, P2.00 more expensive than MERALCO's power rates...Most expensive in the Philippines and one of the most expensive in Asia!

O saan kayo? Rereklamo pa kayo sa Maynila, kami dito sa Iloilo City di nakakakuha ng exposure sa sakit ng ulo na naandyan na since time immemorial. :bash:

Oh by the way:
PECO of Iloilo City charges P11.50 per KwH, P2.00 more expensive than MERALCO's power rates...Most expensive in the Philippines and one of the most expensive in Asia!

O saan kayo? Rereklamo pa kayo sa Maynila, kami dito sa Iloilo City di nakakakuha ng exposure sa sakit ng ulo na naandyan na since time immemorial. :bash:

Ngakkk! Ibaba presyo ng koryente sa Iloilo!!!:bash:

^^ Kaasar nga at wala masyadong exposure. For one, involved ang Lopezes sa PECO eh so you know naman, nyahaha!!! :lol:

Kaasar naman din ang national media and they focus MERALCO as the most expensive in the country samantalang kami naman nagtitiis na sa pagkamahal-mahal na rates na ito....

Anyway sabi daw ng PECO sa amin, pag nagawa na daw ang coal power plant sa Iloilo City 2 years from now, bababa daw ang rates namin P2.00-P3.00, competitive na sa Manila and Cebu daw...Hay, basta sakit sa ulo... :bash:

Oh by the way:
PECO of Iloilo City charges P11.50 per KwH, P2.00 more expensive than MERALCO's power rates...Most expensive in the Philippines and one of the most expensive in Asia!

O saan kayo? Rereklamo pa kayo sa Maynila, kami dito sa Iloilo City di nakakakuha ng exposure sa sakit ng ulo na naandyan na since time immemorial. :bash:

bernie, is that recent confiirmed rate ba, inclusive of other ek ek fees? grabe nang pag pe pera nila sa mga ilonggo:bash:

bernie, is that recent confiirmed rate ba, inclusive of other ek ek fees? grabe nang pag pe pera nila sa mga ilonggo:bash:

Ibagsak ang PECO, ibigay sa Meralco franchise area ng Iloilo..kasi mas mababa sila...:nuts:

bernie, is that recent confiirmed rate ba, inclusive of other ek ek fees? grabe nang pag pe pera nila sa mga ilonggo:bash:

That's what I've heard from the news. And I think that is inclusive of the other charges. Sorry Ng Weina kasi ILECO-service kami, so about P8.00 I think ang total payment sa electricity bill namin sa ILECO service areas, a vast difference from PECO's. P1.00 lower than MERALCO's I think.

If I'm not mistaken, bulk of the charge comes from generation charge which they source it out from PPC Diesel and a minute portion from NPC. Diesel kasi, and you know what happens to fuel prices nowadays. :ohno:

The scrapping of System Loss charge is being eyed to lower down rates at least. And ERC has mandated PECO since 2005 the refund of several billion pesos to its consumers and still ganun pa rin. Magaling din silang mang-blackmail.

As I See It
GSIS’ failed bid also achieved good results


By Neal Cruz
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:10:00 05/30/2008

MANILA, Philippines—Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president and general manager Winston Garcia, a director of of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), may have failed to oust the Lopezes from the management of Meralco but we have to thank him for trying. Were it not for the noise he made about Meralco, this utility would still be merrily doing what it has been doing during the pre-Winston Garcia era—overcharging its customers.

The Lopezes may still control Meralco, but they will be less cocksure now, their shenanigans having been exposed, their activities under scrutiny, and the laws and rules under which they have abused their privilege with impunity being reviewed. Most of all, the eyes of the public have been opened to the fact that for decades power consumers were being abused by Meralco. Customers now know that they are not getting the true worth of the money they are paying Meralco. Most of it is lost in the “systems losses,” in Meralco’s own electric consumption, in Meralco’s income tax payments, in the fat pensions of Meralco executives, in the overpricing of electricity and supplies bought from Meralco’s sister companies—all of which are charged to its customers. Each consumer’s power consumption bill is doubled because of these pass-on charges.

Also, Meralco subscribers now know that the biggest power distribution company in the country owes them billions of pesos that should be given back to them as refunds, as directed by the Supreme Court. And that they cannot now be forced to pay deposits for electric meters. It is our hope that we now have more enlightened and vigilant electric consumers.

It is also our hope that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira) would be amended, that the politicians in the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) would be replaced with professionals, and that electric rates would finally be lowered. These, we hope. When all these happen, don’t forget that Garcia made these possible.

^^

dapat i-review rin ng government ang privatization program nila so that the public will be protected...

...O ayan, yung ginawa ni Garcia na theatrics sa Meralco stockholder's meeting kinainis ng mga foreign chambers of commerce in the Phillipines...

...banatan na kasi ang Meralco ng government regulators...marami kasing kakampi sina LOpez sa board at sa mga stockholders....

...para bumaba ang koryente....

If the foreign chambers' only concern is to keep their profits, then why should we care kung nainis sila? Aren't we supposed to be thinking about what would benefit the public here?

The Lopez management defied the order of the Securities and Exchange Commission to exclude their proxies in the election of Meralco's new board. It seems the Lopezes' only concern is to keep their hold on Meralco and not to sincerely work to lower power rates.

^^

dapat i-review rin ng government ang privatization program nila so that the public will be protected...

What do you mean, review the privatization program? It's economic controls that has nurtured the existence of monopolies like that of the Lopezes.

Power rates should be looked into (http://www.iloiloviews.com/power-rates-should-be-looked-into.html)

Posted on May 26th, 2008

Author: Johnny Novera (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news/johnny-novera), Rural Update (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news/johnny-novera/rural-update), ◙ Panay News (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news)

A RAGING feud is going on in Metro Manila between major stockholder Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and Manila Electric Co. (MERALCO), concerning high power rates being charged to consumers where even the President has now intervened.

The final showdown between the major parties will come tomorrow when stockholders hold their annual meeting. Will the Lopezes hold on to continue running MERALCO or will Winston Garcia of GSIS succeed to wrest control of the giant power firm?

Manila power rates are claimed to be the most expensive in Asia. With what our local power firm, Panay Electric Company (PECO) is charging us here, we disagree and say that Iloilo City has the most expensive power rate in Asia, not Metro Manila!


Now, why do we pay higher electric power rates in Iloilo? The reason is that multiple charges are levied by PECO to consumers. Maybe they should explain.


There are four groups of charges passed on by PECO to customers:

PECO-RELATED CHARGES

Distribution Charge – If we compare the business to selling rice, this refers to the cost of bringing the rice to the consumers. Well, this is reasonable.
Supply Charge – This we cannot understand, because when you distribute, you also supply. Maybe PECO should explain why by just using another term for delivering their kind of service, they will charge another fee.
Metering Charge - This PECO must explain. It is PECO’s obligation to measure the product they are selling and certainly provide itself with the measuring device to do that and not the buyer. But why charge the cost of the electric meter to the consumer?
Retail Customer Charge - This charge is discriminatory because it is an additional burden to small consumers of the product.SUPPLIER-RELATED CHARGES
Generation Charge – PECO now sources its power supply from Panay Power Corporation (PPC) and the National Power Corporation (NPC), unlike before when they, themselves, produce the electricity.
Transmission Charge – This is the cost of supplying or delivering the product to the dealer, in this case, PECO. Why should PECO charge this to consumers when they are being billed, too, for the distribution charge?
Systems Loss Charge – This charge is hard to justify. Let us say that the product being delivered is rice. The rice was wasted on the truck because the sack was slashed or torn, or maybe, whole sacks were stolen in transit.
Imagine, being charged for loss when it is not the consumer’s fault!SUBSIDIES
Under this item, we have Interclass Cross Subsidy and Lifeline Rate Subsidy. We do know what these charges are and why they are charged to consumers.TAXES AND UNIVERSAL CHARGES
VAT on Generation - Clearly, these are taxes payable by the producer of the power in supplying electricity to PECO. PPC and NPC that generate the electric power are giant companies and can well afford to pay the taxes, compared to small electricity users.
VAT on Transmission and on Distribution – Transmitting and distributing achieve the same effect of bringing power to the consumers. There should be only one VAT charge for both.
The Franchise Tax – This certainly should be paid by PECO because it is the franchisor, as well as the missionary and environmental fees.
After MERALCO, we wish the President will also look into the excessive rates of electric franchisees outside Metro Manila to moderate their charges, especially in the countryside where the majority of our people live and now suffering from increased prices of everything.

Since Meralco's case has been brought put already, it is time to also check all utility firms which may have also some irregularities in collecting charges from consumers. It is a good thing that both Houses took time in investigating Meralco. It's high time that a sensible investigation be conducted in both chambers.

The consumers are suffering very much from the excessive collection of these utility firms. If needs be, Congress must take a look and compare all utility firms in the country because some may be overlooked. To begin with Meralco, the Lopezes should at least do something or say something about any possibilities of reducing energy costs.

The Lopezes are still batting to get away with their Corporate Greed by trying to cover up their monopoly scheme.

The Lopezes are more concerned with consolidating their hold on Meralco than in lowering power rates. They recently defied an order of the Securities and Exchange Commission to exclude their proxies in the election of Meralco's new board.

The sooner the power industry is freed from the clutches of these arrogant crocodiles, the better.

Na-isyuhan ng TRO ang SEC at ang GSIS... kaya masaya ang mga galit sa GSIS at galit ang mga galit sa Meralco...

^^
Regardless. Nandyan naman ang government regulators, so dapat umaksyon na. Kumilos na rin naman ang people's organization o cause-oriented groups at kinasuhan na rin Meralco so dapat bababa na koryente sa madaling panahon.

At yung ang hinihintay ng tao.

What if kung sa pagkakaroon ng kaso ng Meralco, mag-shut down ito? E di mawawalan ng kuryente ang Metro Manila? Yun lang naman ang ikinakatakot ko, next to electrical inefficiency at rolling blackouts... dapat refund lang na naayon sa batas ang gawin, hindi aabot pa sa korte ito na maaring maging sanhi ng paghinto ng either Meralco or GSIS...

Please lang, huwag niyong sasabihan ng masyadong maanghang na salita ang Meralco kasi may ibang forumers dito, galit din sa GSIS... baka buweltahan kasi kayo e... and remember, ayon kay Kuya habagatcentral1, mas mahal pa nga raw ang singil sa Iloilo City kaysa sa Metro Manila... payo lang po ito mga kapatid... and in no sense kumakampi ako sa Meralco, kasi kahit ako, gusto ko rin na bumaba ang singil ng Meralco pero hindi ko po ito ninais na umabot ito sa korte...

That's what I've heard from the news. And I think that is inclusive of the other charges. Sorry Ng Weina kasi ILECO-service kami, so about P8.00 I think ang total payment sa electricity bill namin sa ILECO service areas, a vast difference from PECO's. P1.00 lower than MERALCO's I think.

If I'm not mistaken, bulk of the charge comes from generation charge which they source it out from PPC Diesel and a minute portion from NPC. Diesel kasi, and you know what happens to fuel prices nowadays. :ohno:

The scrapping of System Loss charge is being eyed to lower down rates at least. And ERC has mandated PECO since 2005 the refund of several billion pesos to its consumers and still ganun pa rin. Magaling din silang mang-blackmail.

i see thanks...musta naman rate nyo sa ileco...don't have too much hope on that refund. yes they will refund perhaps but the next few days/months they will increase the rate, so san ka dyan:lol:

Power rates should be looked into (http://www.iloiloviews.com/power-rates-should-be-looked-into.html)

Posted on May 26th, 2008

Author: Johnny Novera (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news/johnny-novera), Rural Update (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news/johnny-novera/rural-update), ◙ Panay News (http://www.iloiloviews.com/category/panay-news)

A RAGING feud is going on in Metro Manila between major stockholder Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and Manila Electric Co. (MERALCO), concerning high power rates being charged to consumers where even the President has now intervened.

The final showdown between the major parties will come tomorrow when stockholders hold their annual meeting. Will the Lopezes hold on to continue running MERALCO or will Winston Garcia of GSIS succeed to wrest control of the giant power firm?

Manila power rates are claimed to be the most expensive in Asia. With what our local power firm, Panay Electric Company (PECO) is charging us here, we disagree and say that Iloilo City has the most expensive power rate in Asia, not Metro Manila!


Now, why do we pay higher electric power rates in Iloilo? The reason is that multiple charges are levied by PECO to consumers. Maybe they should explain.


There are four groups of charges passed on by PECO to customers:

PECO-RELATED CHARGES

Distribution Charge – If we compare the business to selling rice, this refers to the cost of bringing the rice to the consumers. Well, this is reasonable.
Supply Charge – This we cannot understand, because when you distribute, you also supply. Maybe PECO should explain why by just using another term for delivering their kind of service, they will charge another fee.
Metering Charge - This PECO must explain. It is PECO’s obligation to measure the product they are selling and certainly provide itself with the measuring device to do that and not the buyer. But why charge the cost of the electric meter to the consumer?
Retail Customer Charge - This charge is discriminatory because it is an additional burden to small consumers of the product.SUPPLIER-RELATED CHARGES
Generation Charge – PECO now sources its power supply from Panay Power Corporation (PPC) and the National Power Corporation (NPC), unlike before when they, themselves, produce the electricity.
Transmission Charge – This is the cost of supplying or delivering the product to the dealer, in this case, PECO. Why should PECO charge this to consumers when they are being billed, too, for the distribution charge?
Systems Loss Charge – This charge is hard to justify. Let us say that the product being delivered is rice. The rice was wasted on the truck because the sack was slashed or torn, or maybe, whole sacks were stolen in transit.
Imagine, being charged for loss when it is not the consumer’s fault!SUBSIDIES
Under this item, we have Interclass Cross Subsidy and Lifeline Rate Subsidy. We do know what these charges are and why they are charged to consumers.TAXES AND UNIVERSAL CHARGES
VAT on Generation - Clearly, these are taxes payable by the producer of the power in supplying electricity to PECO. PPC and NPC that generate the electric power are giant companies and can well afford to pay the taxes, compared to small electricity users.
VAT on Transmission and on Distribution – Transmitting and distributing achieve the same effect of bringing power to the consumers. There should be only one VAT charge for both.
The Franchise Tax – This certainly should be paid by PECO because it is the franchisor, as well as the missionary and environmental fees.
After MERALCO, we wish the President will also look into the excessive rates of electric franchisees outside Metro Manila to moderate their charges, especially in the countryside where the majority of our people live and now suffering from increased prices of everything.

thanks for posting this one. good thing that this meralco issue comes up and our situation in iloilo will be at least put into national limelight. Too much milking already by the Cachos and Lopezes from the ilonggos. Imagine iloilo's rate is higher than that of Manila:ohno:. So participation of the ilonggos on this issue is really vital since without it i am afraid that our national gov't will focus in the sufferings of Metro Manila alone and leave iloilo's plight into oblivion.

Let's just hope that is indeed real fight for the rights of consumers and
not only a gov'ts (garcia's camp) political publicity to sway public opinion by using populist notions ("cheaper electricity, blah blah blah"). And not be taken as a ploy to divert attentions to issues that are dragging the administration right now. Or perhaps a way of helping the Aboitizes which are are business cronies of the First Couple. Or perhaps more public exposure for Garcia if he has any political ambitions.

Anyway, so now that the lopezes already won on the board election, can we still see light here on this issue or will this long court proceedings make this issue be temporarily forgotten as a non-issue?

What if kung sa pagkakaroon ng kaso ng Meralco, mag-shut down ito? E di mawawalan ng kuryente ang Metro Manila? Yun lang naman ang ikinakatakot ko, next to electrical inefficiency at rolling blackouts... dapat refund lang na naayon sa batas ang gawin, hindi aabot pa sa korte ito na maaring maging sanhi ng paghinto ng either Meralco or GSIS...

Please lang, huwag niyong sasabihan ng masyadong maanghang na salita ang Meralco kasi may ibang forumers dito, galit din sa GSIS... baka buweltahan kasi kayo e... and remember, ayon kay Kuya habagatcentral1, mas mahal pa nga raw ang singil sa Iloilo City kaysa sa Metro Manila... payo lang po ito mga kapatid... and in no sense kumakampi ako sa Meralco, kasi kahit ako, gusto ko rin na bumaba ang singil ng Meralco pero hindi ko po ito ninais na umabot ito sa korte...

Remember that the GSIS owns part of Meralco so as co-owner, GSIS has the ability to transfer the management to different power firms should the greedy Lopezes are ousted. Besides, GSIS is not planning to run it themselves and they can always transfer the contract to other power distributors such as the Aboitiz etc. to manage the distribution. Look how efficient MWSS has turned into. It's not being managed by the government. The service is sub-contracted to two different private institutions that upgraded the pipe lines.
Fifteen years ago, our power distributor in QC was not Meralco and we had the lowest electric bill that I can recall - 300 pesos a month. After the distribution was sub-contracted to Meralco, the cost increased by 200% after two months. I would prefer that our power distributor to be reverted back directly from Napocor rather than subcontracted from Meralco.

Hybrid power generators light up Parañaque communities

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/images/news/newspics/tv_grabs/20080531_windmill.jpg

Because of the continued rise in world oil prices, power producers lament that maintaining affordable electricity rates is very difficult. This is why an engineer in Parañaque thought of setting up the first ever hybrid power generators in the city as alternative sources of electricity.

Using solar and wind energy, the generator is able to produce a thousand watts - enough power to light up over 20 lamp posts for nine straight hours.

To date, only six communities in the city benefit from the hybrid power generators.

"Natutuwa sila dahil wala silang binabayarang kuryente, at saka namamangha sila dahil kakaiba," said Parañaque mayor Florencio "Jun" Bernabe Jr..

The community of Talisay has yet to avail of regular electricity service.

More than 20 houses in the area only use candles and chopped wood for light and fuel needs, and families in the community are grateful for the hybrid system.

"Napakalaking bagay ‘yan dahil maski isang ilaw ‘yan napapakinabangan namin. Nakakatipid na kami sa kuryente," said resident Josie Valencia.

Aside from free electricity, the crime rate in the six communities has decreased because of the additional street lighting. Joey Villarama, ABS-CBN News (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryID=120212)

I think GSIS should win over the Lopezes because first and foremost, the Lopez family has illegally taken over Meralco for free - without paying the government any single centavo. The stupid Cory handed Meralco down to them in a silver platter without a single payment. When the Lopezes sold their bulging debt and shares to Marcos, they already relinquished their ownership and transferred it to the government in exchange for the Lopezes’ debt settlement. Since then, all Meralco shares belonged to the government and they didn’t have the right to grab it for free during the tumultuous Cory era.

I think GSIS should win over the Lopezes because first and foremost, the Lopez family has illegally taken over Meralco for free - without paying the government any single centavo. The stupid Cory handed Meralco down to them in a silver platter without a single payment. When the Lopezes sold their bulging debt and shares to Marcos, they already relinquished their ownership and transferred it to the government in exchange for the Lopezes’ debt settlement. Since then, all Meralco shares belonged to the government and they didn’t have the right to grab it for free during the tumultuous Cory era.

What will happen to Meralco if they became managed by GSIS? I know the price will drop but will it also shake the electrical stability of Metro Manila? GSIS nga kuya unstable na (considering they could not EVEN pay their own members even before this war began), dadagdag pa po ang Meralco? Hindi po kaya tumumba na iyan?

And remember, the electric costs in Iloilo City is higher than here in Manila...

Bakit nga ba hindi na lang natin gawin yung sa Paranaque City upang imbis na maghintay tayo kung kailan bababa ang kuryente, e tayo na mismo ang gagawa ng paraan para maging libre ito (or at least bumaba ito...) ayaw niyo noon mga kuya? Renewable na ang energy source natin plus environmentally-friendly pa...

Manila Times
Sunday, June 01, 2008

Bishop slams government’s
plan on Meralco takeover

By Anthony Vargas, Reporter

A RANKING Catholic Church official on Saturday slammed the government’s plan of taking over operational control of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s largest utility.

Archbishop Oscar Cruz of Lingayen-Dagupan cautioned that the government is just taking such move to monopolize the power industry.

“This is very threatening because if that happens, Malacañang would have Transco, National Power Corp. [Napocor] and Meralco under its wings. And whoever controls power, controls industry and commerce,” Archbishop Cruz said in a statement.

“I’m definitely against it because the government is not known to be a good ‘businessman’. The eagerness of the Government Service Insurance System [GSIS] to gain control of the electric company is just a ‘worried’ move by the Malacañang,” the prelate added.

Cruz, a known critic of President Gloria Arroyo, also emphasized the need for a government crackdown on all power distribution companies in the country so as to prove its sincerity to lower power costs.

“The government should not take in business corporations that make money, otherwise, it will lose money,” Cruz said.

The Lopez family was able to regain control of Meralco after a grueling duel between the Winston Garcia-led GSIS during its annual stockholders meeting last Tuesday. The Lopezes still had the majority by securing five of eleven seats, while the GSIS captured four. Independent directors got the remaining two slots.

GSIS president Garcia, however, claims that the GSIS could have secured five seats had the votes of the Lopezes’ “questionable” proxies been excluded.

He then urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to nullify the results as it claims that the Lopezes insisted to hold the meeting despite a cease-and-desist order invoked by the state regulator.

Earlier, House committee on energy Vice Chairman and Rep. Luis Villafuerte also denounced Meralco and First Gas Corporation for blaming Napocor for the mess, citing the fact that First Gas Chief Operating Officer Richard Tantoco already admitted that Meralco paid his company P13 billion for electricity which they failed to deliver to Meralco but which Meralco passed on to consumers.

The wrangling between the government and the Lopezes came after President Arroyo called on the business community to join the fight against Meralco’s alleged overcharging of consumers.

I am for lowering the power rates specially of Meralco. But it should be done in a more appropriate way. Tama itong kay Bishop Cruz.

The government should use ERC and DOE even NAPOCOR in reducing power rates.

I am for lowering the power rates specially of Meralco. But it should be done in a more appropriate way. Tama itong kay Bishop Cruz.

The government should use ERC and DOE even NAPOCOR in reducing power rates.
Wala naman ginawa yang c Bishop kundi kumontra ehh basta laban sa Gov't nariyan sya pero para sa ikabubuti ng mga mamayan nawawala siya dapt isa siya sa mag isip kung paanu baba ang population ng pilipinas at singil sa kuryente ehh... any let's go back to real issue How about Re-Activation of Bataan Nuclear Power Plant makakatulong eto at mabai naman natin yung inutang dyan!

What will happen to Meralco if they became managed by GSIS? I know the price will drop but will it also shake the electrical stability of Metro Manila? GSIS nga kuya unstable na (considering they could not EVEN pay their own members even before this war began), dadagdag pa po ang Meralco? Hindi po kaya tumumba na iyan?

And remember, the electric costs in Iloilo City is higher than here in Manila...
I said earlier that GSIS may be planning to subcontract the powers services to other power distributors such as Aboitiz etc. It's similar to the situation now where GSIS is a major shareholder but the Lopezes run it. Garcia's plan is to subcontract the operation away from the Lopezes and transfer it to other credible electric companies. Better yet, he will split the management into two just like NAWASA. He already reiterated that he will follow the MWSS model by bidding the operation to two different private institutions . Hence, monopoly will be destroyed, the number of employee-supervisors will be retrenched, sourcing of power generation will be widened, and the power rates will go down.

Wish ko lang ito mga kuya,

Sana kapag maayos na ang gusot ng electric bills dito sa Metro Manila, sana naman, i-tackle rin nila yung sa Iloilo City at marami ang umaalma roon...

P2-B subsidy to pay for electricity bills

By Christine Avendaño
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:38:00 05/31/2008


THE GOVERNMENT HAS SET ASIDE A P2-BILLION SUBSIDY as a way to help the poor pay their power bills.

Social Welfare Secretary Esperanza Cabral said Saturday she would present her proposed cash transfer program for small electricity users at the first meeting of the Presidential Task Force on Energy in Malacañang on Monday.

Cabral has been assigned by President Macapagal-Arroyo to draft a cash transfer program for small electricity users using P2 billion, which is part of the P4 billion earlier earmarked by Ms Arroyo for allocation to help people cope with soaring energy costs.

The P4 billion is the money so far collected by the government from the value-added tax (VAT) on electricity. Officials expect the amount to reach P18 billion this year.

“This [subsidy] is help for the poor because power costs have gone up,” Cabral said in a phone interview.

She said the “target” of the cash transfer was the 1.9 million small users of electricity, or those called lifeline users consuming less than 100 kilowatt hours a month in areas covered by Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).

These lifeline users are being served by Meralco in Metro Manila and the provinces of Cavite, Pampanga, Bulacan, Rizal and Quezon.

Cabral said that if she were to calculate the allocation of the P2-billion cash transfer, 1.9 million lifeline users would be entitled to P1,000 a year, or P100 a month.

The subsidy will help, for example, a user of 50 kWh of electricity a month whose bill is P212, she said.

Going by this estimate, Cabral said, the subsidy could be given to small electricity users for a period of from 10 months to one year.

“These are all tentative options that I will present to the task force,” she said.

Cabral said she had yet to decide whether this cash transfer program would cover lifeline users in Metro Manila only, or those in the entire Meralco franchise area (National Capital Region, Region 3 and Region 4A).

She said she also had yet to decide on the mode of the cash transfer -- “whether this would be in one lump sum, or every quarter or every semester.”

She added that she was likewise still studying the requirements to be imposed on the beneficiaries of the cash transfer. One option is for small electricity users to present their last monthly bill to authorities she said.

Unlike the other cash transfer programs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, this love cannot be a conditional one because of, among others things, the small amount involved, Cabral said.

“It’s really just a subsidy to help them get by,” she said.

Malacañang had earlier announced a government plan to use the VAT on oil for the people’s benefit.

Lawmakers are seeking the scrapping of the VAT on oil. But Palace officials have opposed this, saying at one point that it would be “a cure worse than the disease.”

After last week’s Cabinet meeting in La Union, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said Malacañang’s plan was “to give back to the people” the proceeds of the VAT on oil.

Bunye said that the Palace had earmarked P4 billion for the people -- P2 billion to go to the conditional cash transfer program of the DSWD, P1 billion in assistance to the transport sector (particularly for the conversion of vehicles to gas-fueled vehicles), and another P1 billion for loans and assistance to schools.

During the meeting, Ms Arroyo ordered the reactivation of the Presidential Task Force on Energy and gave it two weeks to come up with a contingency plan on how the country could cope with the rising costs of power and oil.

Cabral’s report will apparently be part of the task force’s contingency plans.:ohno:

Lopez to Garcia: Join our campaign to lower prices

May 31, 2008 16:16:00
Abigail L. Ho
Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines -- If you really want to help consumers, join our campaign.

Federico Lopez, president and chief executive of First Gas Power Corp., posed this challenge to Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Winston Garcia, who vowed that power rates would go down 10-20 percent when the state pension fund takes over the management of the Manila Electric Co.

The Lopez-led First Gas owns and operates the two independent power producers that supply power to Meralco: the 1,000-megawatt (MW) Sta. Rita and 500-MW San Lorenzo gas-fired power plants.

"If Mr. Garcia is sincere in his wanting lower power prices for Meralco consumers, we would like to invite him to join us in this advocacy of removing the government royalties on our natural gas,'' Lopez said in a statement.

"We have been saying for the longest time that if the government wants to rationally reduce power rates, it can readily do this through the removal of the sizeable royalties on natural gas. We are the only country left that penalizes its own consumers for using its own indigenous natural gas,'' he added.

He explained that of the P4.36 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that First Gas charges Meralco, as much as P1.79 per kWh goes to the government as payment for royalty tax.

"The power of First Gas would (cost only) P2.57 per kWh if the royalty tax of P1.79 per kWh is removed, (making it) by far one of the cheapest in the country,'' he said.

"Royalty and taxes account for about half of the gas price. Reducing these components will transfer benefits of developing natural gas directly from the government to the consumers through lower electricity prices,'' he added.

He said the increased use of natural gas would still provide economic benefits to the country even if the government would decide to scrap the high royalty taxes slapped on it.

These benefits would come in the form of foreign exchange savings from forgone oil importation, he said.

Garcia had earlier said he would push for the cancellation of Meralco's "trillion-peso sweetheart deals'' with First Gas, which he called "the mother of all sweetheart deals.''

Lopez to Garcia: Join our campaign to lower prices

May 31, 2008 16:16:00
Abigail L. Ho
Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines -- If you really want to help consumers, join our campaign.

Federico Lopez, president and chief executive of First Gas Power Corp., posed this challenge to Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Winston Garcia, who vowed that power rates would go down 10-20 percent when the state pension fund takes over the management of the Manila Electric Co.

The Lopez-led First Gas owns and operates the two independent power producers that supply power to Meralco: the 1,000-megawatt (MW) Sta. Rita and 500-MW San Lorenzo gas-fired power plants.

"If Mr. Garcia is sincere in his wanting lower power prices for Meralco consumers, we would like to invite him to join us in this advocacy of removing the government royalties on our natural gas,'' Lopez said in a statement.

"We have been saying for the longest time that if the government wants to rationally reduce power rates, it can readily do this through the removal of the sizeable royalties on natural gas. We are the only country left that penalizes its own consumers for using its own indigenous natural gas,'' he added.

He explained that of the P4.36 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that First Gas charges Meralco, as much as P1.79 per kWh goes to the government as payment for royalty tax.

"The power of First Gas would (cost only) P2.57 per kWh if the royalty tax of P1.79 per kWh is removed, (making it) by far one of the cheapest in the country,'' he said.

"Royalty and taxes account for about half of the gas price. Reducing these components will transfer benefits of developing natural gas directly from the government to the consumers through lower electricity prices,'' he added.

He said the increased use of natural gas would still provide economic benefits to the country even if the government would decide to scrap the high royalty taxes slapped on it.

These benefits would come in the form of foreign exchange savings from forgone oil importation, he said.

Garcia had earlier said he would push for the cancellation of Meralco's "trillion-peso sweetheart deals'' with First Gas, which he called "the mother of all sweetheart deals.''

Ano namang uri ng campaign iyan? Nakakapanduda...