KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines – Power consumers in most parts of Mindanao continue to suffer from the increasing cost of electricity with rates now at an average of P8 per kilowatt hour for both residential and commercial users.
But it will be a different story for electric consumers here and the rest of North Cotabato province starting next month.
The Cotabato Electric Coop. (Cotelco) said its 98,000 consumers would enjoy lower rates starting next month after the completion of the purchase agreement with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines for a vital transmission line.
Alejandro Collados, Cotelco general manager, said recently that the electric cooperative has purchased the Tacurong-Kidapawan 69-kilovolt line from NGCP.
He did not say how much the purchase cost.
“We can now assure our power consumers of decrease in their monthly bills since our cooperative will no longer pay the connection and residual sub-transmission charges that we used to pay to the NGCP,” he said.
Collados would not say what the actual electricity charge per kilowatt hour would be beyond stating that it would constitute a substantial saving for ordinary consumers.
The purchase, Collados said, would save Cotelco some P2.3 million a month in connection and residual sub-transmission charges.
He said the ancillary charges that Cotelco pays to NGCP would also decrease, resulting in more savings for consumers.
Collados said the money that Cotelco would save would be plowed into projects that would further improve its service.
Meanwhile, a provincial official said electric consumers in the province should be made to pay lower electricity costs because of the energy subsidy that the province was bound to receive from the Energy Development Corp. (EDC) for the use of the Mt. Apo geothermal sources.
Jose Tejada, chairman of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan’s infrastructure and energy committee, said the Department of Energy has confirmed that being the host province of the geothermal sources, North Cotabato gets one centavo subsidy per kilowatt hour used by consumers.
Tejada said EDC has yet to remit the subsidy, which now amounts to over P30 million.
But it will be a different story for electric consumers here and the rest of North Cotabato province starting next month.
The Cotabato Electric Coop. (Cotelco) said its 98,000 consumers would enjoy lower rates starting next month after the completion of the purchase agreement with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines for a vital transmission line.
Alejandro Collados, Cotelco general manager, said recently that the electric cooperative has purchased the Tacurong-Kidapawan 69-kilovolt line from NGCP.
He did not say how much the purchase cost.
“We can now assure our power consumers of decrease in their monthly bills since our cooperative will no longer pay the connection and residual sub-transmission charges that we used to pay to the NGCP,” he said.
Collados would not say what the actual electricity charge per kilowatt hour would be beyond stating that it would constitute a substantial saving for ordinary consumers.
The purchase, Collados said, would save Cotelco some P2.3 million a month in connection and residual sub-transmission charges.
He said the ancillary charges that Cotelco pays to NGCP would also decrease, resulting in more savings for consumers.
Collados said the money that Cotelco would save would be plowed into projects that would further improve its service.
Meanwhile, a provincial official said electric consumers in the province should be made to pay lower electricity costs because of the energy subsidy that the province was bound to receive from the Energy Development Corp. (EDC) for the use of the Mt. Apo geothermal sources.
Jose Tejada, chairman of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan’s infrastructure and energy committee, said the Department of Energy has confirmed that being the host province of the geothermal sources, North Cotabato gets one centavo subsidy per kilowatt hour used by consumers.
Tejada said EDC has yet to remit the subsidy, which now amounts to over P30 million.
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