Oct. 11 power ‘cut-off’ to protest rate hike bid

A 30-minute power shut-off is being pushed by the Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) and a Cebu-based consumer group to protest a petition to hike power rates by 40 centavos per kilowatt hour.

The Cebu City Council in a resolution expressed support for the 30-minute power shut-off to commence at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 11, a Tuesday.

The power rate petition is pending with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).  State-owned power utility National Power Corp. said it needed a power rate adjustment to settle  mounting obligations.

“If you privatize their assets, their liabilities if not paid by the government should be privatized as well and not passed on to the consumers,” said Aaron Pedrosa, FDC secretary general.

Pedrosa said they are asking the government to instead conduct a debt audit and cancel numerous Napocor loans.

They are also seeking the repeal of Republic Act No. 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) to stop Napocor’s privatization.

Pedrosa said the EPIRA failed to bring down power rates and ensure stable, reliable, secure and affordable power to consumers.

The Consumers Right for Economic Welfare (CREW)  joined the FDC in opposing  the power rate petition.

Pedrosa said the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) filed a petition with the ERC for the recovery of Napocor’s stranded debts and contract costs of the Universal Charge (UC).

In their petition, Napocor and PSALM seeks the approval of stranded contract costs amounting to P74.298 billion to be imposed at the rate of P0.37 per kilowatt hour and stranded debts amounting to P65.019 billion at the rate of P0.03 per kilowatt hour.

Pedrosa said Napocor is only waiting for the issuance of provisional authority to start charging electricity consumers with these additional rates pending approval of their petition.

“We believe that PSALM is hiding behind small numbers because the agency’s true and cruel intention is to pass on the entire debt to ordinary consumers,” said Pedrosa.

PSALM is mandated under EPIRA to calculate the amount of stranded debt and stranded contract costs of Napocor.

The ERC denied PSALM and Napocor’s initial petition last Nov. 15 due to their failure to substantiate their application for proposed rate increase.