The Cebu City Council will again invite officials of the Department of Energy to attend a hearing on proposed amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira) after they failed to show up for yesterday’s hearing.
DOE Regional Director Antonio Labios wrote the Cebu City Council sending their regrets.
“Our invitation was sent three weeks ago. Director Labios could have sent even a representative to the public hearing,” Councilor Alvin Dizon said.
Councilor Nestor Archival asked the City Council to again invite Labios in the next public hearing on July 9 and to require him to submit a written report on the amendments.
The City Council is also looking into a petition by the Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) for over/under recovery of cost filed with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).
Recovery of costs
Lyndon Jayme, assistant vice president for utility economics of Veco, briefed councilors on the petition filed before the ERC on March 30, 2012.
“If proven, that there is over-recovery we will return it to the consumers and if there is under-recovery, we will also be collecting this based on ERC approval,” he said.
Jayme promised to return to the City Council as soon as they receive word on the ERC decision.
Councilors also asked Jayme to furnish them with a list of all the taxes that are included in the monthly bill, lifeline charges and discounts they grant to senior citizens and people with disabilities.
At yesterday’s hearing, the council and representatives of people’s organizations blamed the Epira law for the high power costs.
Broken promise
Jaime Paglinawan of the local Bagong Alyansang Makabayan chapter said they are lobbying to have the law repealed and for government to use the proceeds from the Malampaya gas field in Palawan to fund renewable energy projects.
Paglinawan also asked the City Council to pass a resolution asking Veco to do away with collecting systems loss charges and Value-Added Tax (VAT) to lower the cost of power.
Isabello Joseph Tomas II of the Office of the General Counsel of the ERC said the Epira is an “ambitious law” but the national government is using it as basis to improve the country’s power sector. “But it cannot be done overnight,” he said.
Councilor Dizon told Tomas that the Epira is the government’s “one broken promise” because it allowed a few big investors to monopolize the country’s power industry.
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