Electric coops hit power rate adjustment

The Association of Philippine Electric Cooperatives (APEC-Party List) denounced yesterday the imposition of the power purchase adjustment (PPA) by the Energy Regulatory Board (ERB) on five million rural electric consumers nationwide.

Luis Corral, APEC secretary general, said the PPA is included in consumers’ electric bills representing 30 percent or approximately P1.88/kwh for Metro Manila users utilizing Meralco. He said the rate varies from one franchise area to another.

"The PPA would amount to more or less P200 per month for poor households to P1,000 and above for rich ones. And yet the PPA does not represent any cost related to the actual production of distribution of electricity," he said.

Corral disclosed that the PPA is being imposed to recover P480 billion worth of overpriced contracts of the National Power Corp. and Meralco to buy electricity from 47 independent power producers.

"This is unconscionable. We in APEC condemn this shameless transfer of wealth from the electric consumers to the rich. If the Power Reform bill does not address this concern it will be no reform at all," he pointed out.

He said that in the provinces, electric cooperatives are being used unwittingly as collectors of the PPA since they are bound to pass the charges on to the consumers. They are doing this against their will, Corral said.

The APEC head questioned the lack of consultation on the part of the ERB in the PPA’s implementation. He said there was no honest-to-goodness consultation with civil society where intervenors could have agreed or disagreed with the PPA implementation.

"Did the ERB officials actually believe that the PPA charge was in the public interest and not contrary to their charter?" he asked.