AT CAPITOL
Snatching halts bids
for P87M generators
BY CARLA GOMEZ

The bidding to supply four generators for the Negros First CyberCentre, with an appraised budget contract of P87 million, was postponed yesterday when the bid documents of one of two participating firms were snatched.

The bidding by the two firms who had signified their participation, Gendiesel Philippines Inc. and Dynamic Builders and Construction Co.,  has been reset to 9:30 a.m. today, Bids and Awards Committee chairman Lucille Pines said.

But Acting Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said he believes the bidding should be postponed for a couple of days to make sure that no one is being given undue advantage in the bidding process.

Ceneco sees slight
hike in power rates
BY ADRIAN NEMES III

Central Negros Electric Cooperative president Arnel Lapore claimed yesterday said that the additional payment in the January billing of the electric consumers is negligible as the increase will only be P0.45 per kilowatt hour for those who are consuming more than 100 kilowatt per hour.

Lapore said the "slight" increase is an offshoot of the approval made by the Energy Regulatory Commission last month of the settlement agreement sought by CENECO and Panay Energy Development Corporation in relation to the debt owed by the utility firm to PEDC amounting to P192 million.

Chiz wants oil
price intervention
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero yesterday said he is pushing for an amendment to the Oil Price Deregulation Law to prevent predatory pricing that has resulted in higher fuel prices for Negros Occidental.

“In areas where there is market failure, or clearly an absence of competition, government must be able to enter the picture and set the prices to prevent predatory pricing from happening,” said Escudero, who was in Bacolod City for the 3rd Congressional District Education Summit.

Negrenses have been calling on government to act on the large disparity in fuel prices that has caused them to pay more than consumers in Metro Manila and Cebu.