Power crisis in Mindanao set to justify high rates, total energy privatization—Bayan

DAVAO CITY, Philippines—The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines charges Mindanao consumers more for the electricity that it distributes compared to what it collects from those in the Visayas or Luzon.

NGCP did not say why this was so but in its rate schedule for April for example, it charged Mindanao consumers P10.18 per kilowatt-hour compared to P9.77 for Visayas and P9.94 for Luzon.

Mindanao is heavily dependent on hydropower-produced electricity that NGCP distributes to power utilities but since the start of the year, electricity is more costly in the island-region.

On Monday, the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) in Southern Mindanao denounced the high cost of electricity in the island-region.

The militant group – during a rally held outside the Davao Light and Power Co. here, said power utilities would point at the “power crisis” affecting Mindanao as reason for the high cost of electricity.

But Sheena Duazo, Bayan spokesperson, said efforts to totally privatize the energy sector have been the real reason behind for the high cost.

“The power crisis is nothing but orchestrated to justify the total privatization of power industry and allow power trippers such as Aboitiz, Cojuangco, Sy, and Lopez to fully control and deregulate the generation, transmission, distribution, and all aspects of the power industry to extract super profit,” Duazo said.

She said the privatization of electricity – which has been glaring from the government’s slow response to the crisis – would definitely result in further increase in electricity bills because private companies would aim for larger profit that service to the public.

“Electricity is supposed to be a social service where the government should make it accessible for the people, but with the privatization of such vital industry, we are given by the government with two choices: suffer from rotational brownouts or pay higher electricity rates,” Duazo said.

She said the government should rehabilitate existing sources such as the Agus and Pulangi hydropower plants and establish new ones – including renewable energy sources.

Duazo said the government should also nationalize the power industry and junk the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001.

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