PB approves measure on electric generation charges for Malapascua

CEBU, Philippines — Electric generation charges will be used to support the Cebu Provincial Government in covering the fuel consumed by the installed generation sets to supply electricity in Malapascua Island, Daanbantayan, northern Cebu.

The Cebu Provincial Board, during its March 3 regular session, approved en mass motion the ordinance for electric generation charges to Cebu Electric Cooperative (CEBECO) II to ensure the continuous supply of electricity in Malapascua.

In the ordinance, all households, businesses, and establishments will be levied on the electricity charge for the consumed electricity from Aug. 6, 2024, to Jan. 31, 2025.

“This charge shall remain in effect until such time that CEBECO II, or any other legally authorized entity, assumes operation of the power station on Malapascua Island,” reads the ordinance authored by third district Provoncial Board Member John Ismael Borgonia.

Last year, the Cebu Provincial Government installed four generation sets with 500 KVA (kilo-volt-amperes) each to address the power crisis in Malapascua Island, after the power supplier Powersource Philippines, Inc. (PSPI) failed to supply the island with enough power.

Since August last year up to the present, the Capitol has been spending (PHP16.80/kWh) on fuel to supply Malapascua Island with electricity.

“There is a need to support the Provincial Government in covering the fuel consumed by the residents and businesses on Malapascua Island, especially amid the prevailing social and economic uncertainties,” Borgonia said in his resolution for the ordinance.

The Capitol set the electricity charge formula with the actual usage of electricity in kilowatt-hours (kWh) times P16.80 per kWh.

The payment for power generation will be remitted by CEBECO II to the Capitol.

The CEBECO has been asked to submit a monthly report to the Cebu Provincial Government with details on the actual electricity consumption by the Capitol’s gen-sets from Aug. 6, 2024 to Jan. 31, 2025.

“The electricity charge shall be amortized over twenty-four (24) months for each individual or entity receiving this levy. Thus, the total charge may be paid in monthly installments, beginning with the issuance of the first billing," the ordinance stated.

For electricity consumption from the gensets provided by the Capitol starting Feb. 1, 2025 onwards, it will be levied further on the electricity charge using the same formula.

Ceremonial switch-on

Meanwhile, the Visayan Electric (VECO) recently conducted a ceremonial switch-on on a House Wiring Project under the Department of Energy’s ER1-94 Program in Barangay Lanas, City of Naga, Cebu.

VECO Chief Executive Officer Raul Lucero said that for the first phase of the project, it is set to benefit almost 4,000 indigent households without electricity in the City of Naga and San Fernando, with a total budget of P28 million.

As a start, 26 families in Barangay Lanas were the first batch of beneficiaries for the free house-wiring program that normally cost around P12,000 to P13,000, if done by private contractor.

During the switch-on ceremony, a symbolic lighting of a diorama was done representing the newly connected homes.

The VECO, in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) and Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) Philippines, spearheaded the project --- marking the kickoff of the first implementation of the ER 1-94 program in the Visayas.

The ER 1-94 program, created under Republic Act 7638, or the Department of Energy Act of 1992, ensures that host communities of power plants receive financial benefits from electricity sales.

Under the program, power generation companies allocate one centavo per kilowatt-hour (P0.01/kWh) of their revenue to fund electrification, development, and environmental programs, for host communities. City of Naga is a home of Kepco, a power generator.

VECO has received a total of P28,245,589.37 electrification funds from the DOE under the ER1-94 Program, with KEPCO being one of the major contributors.

The full amount, as well as future electrification funds that will be given to Visayan Electric, will be used for house wiring projects in the franchise area, with the City of Naga as the pilot local government unit to benefit from the program.

There are 184 households in Naga that have been listed to be part of the program.

Some of the 26 beneficiaries who attended the switch-on ceremony were in high spirit and happy that finally they will have an electrical connection of their own. — JG (FREEMAN)