Power coop to refund P6.8-million to consumers

By Teresa Ellera-Dulla
Saturday, December 17, 2011


CONSUMERS of the Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative Inc. (Noceco) covering Southern Negros will be enjoying a patronage refund pegged at P6.4 million starting this month.


Noceco chairman John Peter Millan confirmed the announcement Friday after the board approved a resolution for the distribution of the cooperative's net surplus or patronage refund to the members-consumers to be refunded in the form of discounts in electricity bills.


Plan your Sinulog week ahead and find out what's in store for Sinulog 2012.


Millan explained the patronage refund is given after the cooperative’s 2010 operations attained a net surplus of P12.8 million.


The board decided to distribute the net surplus or patronage refund on staggered basis in four tranches by three districts per release starting December 2011 billing month up to March 2012.


Meanwhile, Millan said that the Noceco board also strongly opposes the P0.44 rate hike asked by Kepco Salcon.


Noceco gets 10 megawatts of its baseload from Kepco Salcon.


Millan said that they found the reasons of Kepco unacceptable and untimely for the company to collect commercial rates.


Millan said that they go with the decision of other Negros Island electric cooperatives which are opposing such move by Kepco.


The Noceco board is now exploring possibilities of getting power supplies from other Independent Power Producers like the Panay Energy Development Corp. (TED)


Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on December 17, 2011.