- CHERYL G. CRUZ
Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Benitez is questioning the two different contract prices of electricity purchased by the Central Negros Electric Cooperative from Palm Concepcion Power Corporation (PCPC).
Benitez said that as per the generation charge for November 2022, published on the Ceneco website, the power coop “had purchased 33.25 percent from PCPC at the rate of P14.6961/kWh and another item showing that it had also purchased 19 percent from PCPC, at a lower rate of P10.2747/kWh”.
In his letter to Energy Regulatory Commission chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta dated Jan. 2, 2023 and furnished the Negros NOW Daily Jan. 7, the mayor said “the two different rates coming from one and the same power generator produces a lot of questions, among which is if PCPC has been charging Ceneco with the correct power rates on its 33.25 percent power purchase considering that P10.2747/kWh is the latest contract price it had with Ceneco.
“Worth looking into also is the possible abuse of power market, considering the big disparity in the two rates…warranting a review by the ERC of the power supply agreements between Ceneco with PCPC.”
Benitez also sent a letter to Atty. Vic Alvaro, acting general manager of Ceneco, saying he “wishes to be clarified on the two rates…and requests for a detailed comparative breakdown of the rates from PCPC”.
He said he has been actively pursuing measures to lessen the cost of electricity in Bacolod, and these include a review of the power rates of Ceneco.
Benitez also earlier said he is eyeing a contestable costumer setup for Bacolod so that the power requirement can directly be purchased from producers or suppliers, in a bid to reduce the generation charge that comprises about 70 percent of the price of electricity per kilowatt-hour.
Contestable customers are large end-users able to purchase power directly from Retail Electricity Suppliers (RES) under the retail competition and open access program (RCOA), as per Republic Act No. 9136, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001.
“Why do we have to rely on the spot market and contracts when producers can deal directly with us, and (some) even willing to give us rebates or discount as contestable costumer,” the mayor said on the sidelines of the Ceneco year-end consumers’ assembly Dec. 15.
He said an end-user consuming 500-kilowatt up can became a contestable costumer. “Ang akon proposal is, what if tanan nga consumers sa Bacolod, e-aggregate and create a contestable costumer. We choose where to get the power, we will still pay the charges passing through the distribution channel but the generation cost will be reduced.”/CGC
