September 4, 2018 | 12:02 am By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-editor
TWO of the country’s biggest associations for electric
cooperatives have called on the franchise committee of the House of
Representatives to think twice before allowing an entity led by Solar
Philippines Power Project Holdings, Inc. to build minigrids in popular tourist
destinations.
In a statement, National Association of General Managers of
Electric Cooperatives (Nagmec) and Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives
Association (Philreca) expressed “grave concern” over Solar Philippines’ plan,
calling it underhanded and a death sentence to their members.
The associations, through their heads, were reacting to a
statement from Solar Philippines President Leandro L. Leviste on his plan to
build minigrids in 12 remote towns in the Philippines.
Nagmec and Philreca claimed that Solar Philippines was
applying for a national franchise through its minigrid project. They also said
the House Committee on Franchises “reportedly scheduled to pass” the franchise
for plenary deliberations on Monday (Sept. 3).
Nagmec President Sergio C. Dagooc said Solar Philippines
“slyly and wisely chooses these locations in tourism-promoted locales because
establishing a power distribution footprint there is always good for public and
press relations.”
He said the company’s “underhanded efforts are beginning to
bear fruit with the reported impending passage” of the national franchise in
the House.
Sought for comment, Mr. Leviste said the microgrids are
under a new company he formed called Solar Para sa Bayan, not Solar
Philippines.
“Our first operations include towns such as Paluan,
Occidental Mindoro; Dumaran, Palawan; Claveria, Masbate; and Calayan, Cagayan;
which have been considered so commercially unviable they have not even been
served by electric utilities and their requests for service ignored for
decades,” he said via e-mail.
Mr. Leviste, whose mother is Senator Loren B. Legarda, said
the company is complying with all legal requirements.
“Lastly, it is worth emphasizing that under the
Constitution, no franchise shall be exclusive, and the franchises of electric
utilities all explicitly state they are non-exclusive. We therefore hope that
both private companies and electric cooperatives will join in the common
mission of bringing reliable and affordable electricity to the Filipino people
who have so long aspired for better service,” Mr. Leviste said.
However, Mr. Dagooc said “any effort on electrification done
without government subsidy is not sustainable because the consumers stand to
pay the very expensive true cost of electrification.”
He said only the electric cooperatives sustained rural
electrification for close to five decades now “because the government
subsidized the cost.”
He challenged Solar Philippines and other private entities
to prioritize remote, underserved locations first if they were sincere about
supplying power to the countryside.
Meanwhile, Philreca President Presley C. De Jesus asked
whether the government was being selective and prone to unduly favoring for
profit groups in their push to enter the power sector.
“There are existing rules and issuances on electrification
that electric coops follow,” Mr. De Jesus said. “Are its rates approved by the
Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC)?”
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