Benguet demands taxes from power company

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet—The provincial government has asked the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to cancel the certificate of compliance issued to San Roque Power Corp. (SRPC) for its supposed failure to remit Benguet’s share in the national wealth tax.

Itogon town in Benguet province and San Nicolas and San Manuel towns in Pangasinan province host the San Roque multipurpose dam, which is operated by SRPC.

But the ERC has not resumed hearings on Benguet’s petition since the postponement of its inquiry due to Typhoon “Ruby” on Dec. 8 last year, according to Benguet Gov. Nestor Fongwan.

The national wealth tax represents 1 percent of the gross revenue of a renewable energy firm that is paid directly to local governments that host the power facility.

The petition urged the ERC to issue a writ of preliminary mandatory injunction to compel SRPC to pay the national wealth tax, and to sanction the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM), Strategic Power Development Corp. (SPDC) and National Power Corp. (Napocor) for violating the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Republic Act No. 9136).

SMC subsidiary

SPDC, a subsidiary of San Miguel Corp., took over as SRPC’s independent power producer administrator from PSALM on Jan. 26, 2010.

Tom Valdez, SRPC vice president for corporate social responsibility, declined to comment, saying the case is now before the ERC.

The Benguet provincial government said it was not able to collect P78.66 million in national wealth tax share that included P16.98 million for Itogon; P32.56 million for Barangay (village) Dalupirip and P29.11 million for Barangay Ampucao, both in Itogon.

“Our problem started when PSALM replaced Napocor as San Roque Dam’s administrator. We tried our best to talk to the parties involved and settle the problem but it did not work,” Fongwan said.

Former San Manuel Councilor Augustus Almogela, then chair of the town council’s laws and ordinances committee, said the turnover agreement between SPDC and PSALM did not oblige SPDC to pay the local governments’ national wealth tax share.

Declining share

In Pangasinan, Marilou Utanes, the provincial treasurer, said the provincial government had opted to await the outcome of Benguet’s petition.

Utanes said Pangasinan was in talks with PSALM for the restoration of the province’s national wealth tax share.

Records at the provincial treasurer’s office showed that the Pangasinan government received between P1.5 million and P1.7 million every quarter from 2009 to 2010. But the share slid down to P81,498 in 2011 and rose slightly to P338,382 in 2012 and 2013.

In 2014, the province received P255,110 every quarter. “We have been asking them why [our share suddenly plunged], but we did not get any explanation,” Utanes said.

San Nicolas Mayor Rebecca Saldivar said she had continued to accept the town’s share “under protest.” She said the P1.2 million that her town used to receive every quarter was reduced to P400,000. Kimberlie Ngabit-Quitasol and Gabriel Cardinoza, Inquirer Northern Luzon