E. Samar gov to DILG: Help address high power rates

Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone (L) and Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos | PHOTOS: Official facebook pages of Gov. Ben Evardone and DILG

TACLOBAN CITY – Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone has sought assistance of Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos in a bid to address the high cost of electricity in the province and the rest of Eastern Visayas.

“We are the host of renewable energy plants (but) we are not benefiting from it. If you can help us to come up with a national policy that host communities benefit from the renewable energy plants,” said Evardone in a dialogue with Abalos at the Summit Hotel in Tacloban on Monday.

While Eastern Samar has renewable energy plants, the governor said the province does not benefit from i due to the one-grid policy of the government.

“I hope you can help,” Evardone told Abalos, who promised to look into the matter

Eastern Samar has solar and hydropower plants which produces a combined 34 megawatts operated by Taft Solar Project.

The power produced from these plants are sold outside Eastern Samar which has one of the highest power rates in the region. At present, power consumers in the province are paying more than P15 per kilowatt hour.

Eastern Samar Electric Cooperative (Esamelco) gets its power supply from coal-powered GN Power in Bataan.

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