Batangas Electric Cooperative open to jt venture with Meralco

The Batangas Electric Cooperative (Batelec) II is open to a joint venture with the Manila Electric Corp. (Meralco).

Batelec general manager Gil Manundo said what they want is a corporate relationship which should be equitable.

Manundo said they are open to the idea "for as long as the personality of the cooperative is not undermined and the relationship is equitable."

He said what they are not interested in is selling out to another cooperative or any private corporation. "The cooperative already owns the facilities so why should we sell out?"

However, Batelec must first settle the issue of handling its huge loans amounting to P454 million. In fact, Batelec is involved in a congressional hearing to determine how it will handle the repayment scheme.

According to Batelec officials, the debt is spread out from drawdowns from the Development Bank of the Philippine (DBP) and the National Electrification Administration (NEA).

"But our services have not been affected since forming debts is normal for the expansion programs of any cooperative," they added.

The trend towards joint ventures between electric cooperatives and private power firms has been mounting since last year.

The latest of these joint ventures involves the Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative (Daneco) and Aboitiz Power Corp. (APC).

The joint venture plan is now under study by the NEA. APC wants to acquire 70 percent of Daneco worth more than P300 million while the remaining 30 percent will remain in the existing cooperative's hands.

Other rural electric cooperatives that have been receiving feelers from the private sector are the Angeles Electric Cooperative, the Pampanga Electric Coop., and Pangasinan Electric Coop.

Among the power firms interested in forming joint ventures or buying into electric cooperatives are Salcon Power Corp., and the Angeles Power Corp.