Power rate hike to pay for execs' cars - lawmaker

MANILA, Philippines - The power rate increases the state power corporation is seeking will partly cover perks for officials of the agency, including expensive cars and watches, Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said yesterday.

“This move of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) should be exposed and opposed for being anti-consumer,” Evardone said.

He said the Commission on Audit (COA) has questioned the decision of PSALM to give its officials, employees and consultants extra perks, including “signature watches, memberships in health and fitness clubs, and cars.”

He said the cost of the perks would be shouldered by consumers as it is included in the rate adjustments that PSALM is seeking from the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

“As if these are not enough, PSALM is hiring a foreign PR (public relations) agency to sell its rate increase petitions to the Filipino public and to publish a coffee table book,” Evardone added, pointing out that like the agency’s perks, the cost of hiring the PR agency and producing the coffee table book would be passed on to the public.

“With this kind of leadership in some of our agencies, we should pity ourselves,” he said. “PSALM’s legal mandate is very clear: to privatize Napocor’s (National Power Corp.) assets to pay for its debts.”

Evardone has opposed PSALM’s four power rate increase petitions, saying the more than $10 billion in proceeds from the sale of Napocor assets should have been enough to wipe out the power firm’s indebtedness.

Toward the latter part of last year, the ERC returned the four petitions, totaling more than P2 per kilowatt-hour (kwh), because of the liquidator’s failure to give the regulator sufficient information to support the increases it was seeking.

Last week, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said PSALM intends to re-file the petitions.

As if it was any consolation to consumers, Almendras said the liquidator would try to reduce the increases it would seek.

Aside from PSALM, another state power firm, the Renewable Energy Board, has petitioned ERC for a rate increase averaging 12 centavos per kwh to pay for investments in renewable energy, plus a profit margin of up to 18.5 percent a year.

In addition to these adjustments, the ERC has reportedly allowed Meralco an increase equivalent to P1.58 per kwh based on the so-called performance-based regulation scheme.

Evardone lamented that even without these adjustments, the Philippines already holds the unenviable record of having the highest power rates in Southeast Asia.