Power crisis looms in Iloilo City

Mandurriao district, Iloilo City (Photo by Emmanuel Julabar)

A group of private power distributors has warned of a power crisis in Iloilo City if Panay Electric Company (PECO) fails to renew its franchise.

In its letter to Rep. Franz Alvarez, chair of the legislative franchises committee, the Private Electric Power Operators Association (PEPOA) said the franchise to distribute electricity in the city must not be given to More Minerals Corporation (MMC).

According to the group, MMC “is not technically capable to serve as the distribution utility in the city.”

“It’s a mining company as shown in the primary purpose of its articles of incorporations,” it said.

“Even if MMC were to change its primary purpose into power distribution, no company can get the required experience and qualifications in just a few days,” the group added.

PEPOA claimed that MMC “has no distribution system to operate and will have to build one from the scratch.”

“A company that has no experience and qualifications to run an electric distribution utility will put the city in high risk of a power crisis. Moreover, granting another entity the franchise to distribute electricity in Iloilo City will entail the duplication of distribution facilities and will be a total waste of scarce resources,” it said.

MMC, a company funded by Spanish-Filipino billionaire Enrique Razon, applied for a legislative franchise to distribute power in the city.

“We are shocked to learn of the hasty approval of the franchise application of MMC to the detriment of the incumbent distribution utility (PECO),” PEPOA said.

The group said PECO has been in the electric distribution industry for 95 years and has the track record, experience, and technical know-how in running the business.

“PECO is one of the better performing electric distribution utilities in the country.”

PEPOA defended PECO over the erroneous billing complaints of the latter’s consumers.

“We have seen the number of billing complaints registered in the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and that figure doesn’t even comprise 01 percent of PECO’s more than 60, 000 customer base,” the group said.

“To make this as basis for approving the franchise application MMC is unjustifiable. Almost all electric distribution utilities, even the best-performing ones, have erroneous billing complaints which can be resolved on their own initiatives, or with ERC intervention if needed. This is not something new to the industry and is certainly not sufficient basis for withholding the franchise renewal of PECO,” it added.

PEPOA’s letter, dated September 19, was submitted by its president, lawyer Ranulfo M. Ocampo.

SOURCE: Iloilo Metropolitan Times

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