VECO opposes tariff on renewable energy

CEBU, Philippines - The Visayan Electric Company (VECO) expressed opposition on the implementation of the feed-in tariff (FIT) rates for renewable energy.

The FIT is a subsidy given to renewable energy developers. The government is still in the process of determining how much the subsidy should be.

Ricardo Lacson,VECO’s vice president for customer services, said during a press conference last Friday that they are against it because this will bring up the cost of power that is already expensive at source, especially the solar energy.

“We believe that it’s not beneficial to our customers. We oppose in supporting the feed-in tariff because not all of these sources are very cheap. Solar energy equipment is very expensive,” he said.

Earlier, the trade department had also aired objections to the feed-in tariff in renewable energy. Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo had said that only a few will benefit from the FIT and questioned the logic of protecting producers that only have a small capacity.

“It is hard to give protection to an industry that meets only five percent of the requirement,” Domingo told reporters.

He stressed, however, that he is not against renewable energy.

National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) chairman Pete H. Maniego Jr. earlier said that power rates will further go up because of FIT for renewable energy particularly for solar. Maniego further pointed out the value-added tax on imported equipment for renewable energy, making the cost of doing business in the Philippines higher.

Energy Secretary Jose Almendras for his part had said the FIT rates may be adjusted given the position of the Department of Trade and Industry.

For Domingo, investors that already have subsidies should no longer avail of other subsidies. The Renewable Energy Act or Republic Act 9513 was approved in 2008 and provides for incentives for investors in the renewable energy sector. — (FREEMAN)