Ceneco, KSPC file manifestation on power sales contract approval

Sunstar Bacolod

THE Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) and Kepco-Salcon Power Corporation (KSPC) have asked the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) “to admit an Affidavit of Service of a Ceneco employee in lieu of the required certificates” coming from three legislative bodies in the electric coop’s franchise area.

Lawyer Russel Alabado of the Alabado & Partners Law Offices, counsel for applicants Ceneco and KSPC, in a manifestation on posting pre-filing requirements dated February 7, 2011, said that “in compliance with Rule 6 of the ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, applicants have furnished the respective legislative bodies of local government units of all the cities and municipalities of Ceneco's franchise area.”

He added that the applicants were able to secure the certificates from the Sangguniang Panlungsod of Bacolod, Silay and Talisay as well as the Sangguniang Bayan of Murcia.

"However, despite receipt of the application, the legislative bodies of Bago City, the municipality of Don Salvador Benedicto (DSB) and the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental refused and continue to refuse to issue their respective certifications," Alabado stressed.

“The continued refusal of these legislative bodies to issue the required certificates already caused delay in the filing of an application before this honorable Commission. Considering that the commissioning of the Cebu Power Plant will end in February and May 2011, applicants are constrained to ask the Commission's indulgence to admit the Affidavit of Service of Prezel Moncatar in lieu of the required certificates due to the mentioned reason," the motion added.

The application is for the approval of the commissioning power sales contract between KSPC and Ceneco with motion for the issuance of provisional authority, which is docketed under ERC Case No. 2011-012.

In an affidavit dated January 26, 2011, Moncatar said that "pursuant to the order and directive of the ERC, I have served...by personal means, a copy of the Approval of the Commissioning Power Sales Contract between KSPC and Ceneco to the respective offices of the sanggunian secretaries of Bacolod, Silay, Talisay, Negros Occidental, Murcia and DSB on Jan. 5, 2011 and Bago City on Jan.6.”

Section 1 of ERC’s Rule 6 states that “among the applications or petitions that directly affect the electricity rates chargeable to the end users or directly affect the consumers are applications for a general change in rate schedules or revision of rates and applications for approval of a power supply contract between a distribution utility and power producer.”

The Commission may consider other applications and petitions as falling under this category of applications/petitions and thus direct compliance with the pre-filing requirements in Section 2 of this rule, which stresses that “the applicant or petitioner must furnish the LGU legislative body (and not the Office of the Mayor) of the city or municipality where it principally operates, a copy of the application or petition, and not a mere notice of application/petition, with all its annexes and accompanying documents. If such principal place of operation is a component city or a municipality, the applicant or petitioner shall likewise furnish the LGU legislative body of the province of which such component city or municipality is part.” (CGC)

Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on February 19, 2011.