The Energy Regulatory Commission granted the demand of Bayan Muna for the transfer of hearings on the latest Central Negros Electric Cooperative application for rate increases to Bacolod City, instead of its main office in Manila.

CENECO has filed an application for approval of over/under-recoveries in the implementation of automatic cost adjustments and true-up mechanisms under ERC Resolution No.16, Series of 2009, as amended by resolution No. 21, Series of 2010 on March 26.

Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia had also filed an opposition to the application of CENECO to collect from its consumers P414.6 million, and asked ERC to suspend the hearing of the case until CENECO conducts consultations with consumer members and explain the purpose, reason and effect of the application for under-recovery.

Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares said “I am glad that the ERC has granted the urgent request I and Rep. Teddy Casiño filed with the Commission for the transfer of the hearings of CENECO’s latest application for rate increases to Bacolod City.”

Although the April 26 hearing pushed through as scheduled, the next hearings in Bacolod will help ensure that the consumers are not placed at a disadvantage by holding the hearings in Manila, he said.

Colmenares said the expenses and other difficulties posed by travelling to Manila for the hearings will effectively deprive the consumers of Bacolod City the right to participate or oppose in the CENECO application. Considering the public interest involved, it is but proper for CENECO to grant our request for the transfer of venue to Bacolod,” he said.

The solons move was prompted by its Bayan Muna Negros chairman Alejandro "Bundo" Deoma who learned of CENECO’s treacherous maneuver to hold the hearing in Manila, a press release from Comenares said.

Colmenares who hails from Villamonte, Bacolod City, said “Our experience with CENECO is a living example why the EPIRA Law should be scrapped. While brownouts still happen coupled with the threat of the spread of the energy crisis in Mindanao to the Visayas, we continue to pay high rates for our electricity,” he said.

He also said the people must pressure Congress to repeal the EPIRA law and implement long term reform in the energy sector.

Meanwhile, Deoma vows to organize consumer opposition against the CENECO application since consumers have been paying high prices for CENECO inefficiency, systems loss and even perks of the CENECO board.

CENECO general manager Sulpicio Lagarde Jr., meanwhile, said the CENECO Board passed a resolution requesting KEPCO SPC and ERC to extend the recovery period for the billing differential from one month to one year at 0.055 centavos/kwh instead of the 55 centavos/kwh published in local dailies Thursday based on their press statement.

He said that on October 2010, CENECO and KEPCO SPC inked an agreement where the latter will supply the electric cooperative the commissioning power at the rate of P1.5905 per kilowatt hour pending ERC evaluation and approval.

In its recent ruling, the ERC approved the commissioning power sales contract rate at P2.879/kwh, he said. KSPC therefore, is entitled to collect a billing differential of P1.2824/kwh from October 2010 to February 2011, he added.

Lagarde also said that, with the ERC decision, KEPCO is authorized to recover from CENECO the billing differential on the CPSC amounting to P0.66/kwh, or a total of P31,161,233.08.

To cushion the impact on the member-consumers, the CENECO Board passed a resolution requesting KEPCO and ERC to extend the recovery period from one month at 0.055 centavos/kwh to one year, he said.*CGS

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