Monday, July 26, 2004 City council to mull measure on rate increase
THE City Council will focus on voicing its protest against the Napocor petition to remove the P.40 cap per kilowatt-hour from its purchased power cost adjustment (PPCA).
Councilor Jose Benjamin Benaldo said while the City Council is scheduled to approve a resolution calling on a reduction of the Cagayan de Oro Power and Light Co. (Cepalco) P.12 increase to P.6 he would present the city's case before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) in Davao City this week.
"Councilor Simeon Licayan proposed for the reduction and Councilor Ian Mark Nacaya who chairs the public utilities committee is supposed to handle this so the resolution may come anytime tomorrow (Monday)," he said.
He said a smiling Mayor Vicente Emano informed him about the short meeting the latter had with top Cepalco officials last Friday.
However he said he doesn't know whether reports of threats to bomb Cepalco offices and attack employees had somehow convinced the local power utility firm to re-consider lowering their rates.
The mayor earlier called on groups who had issued the threats not to resort to violence in an interview over at a local radio station.
The councilor meanwhile said he is outlining City Hall's position on the power rates issue, which had been discussed during last week's ERC hearing held here in Cagayan de Oro.
Benaldo specifically cited the quarterly generation rate adjustment mechanism (GRAM), which grants Napocor and power utilities the chance to seek additional power rate hikes from time to time.
"Actually Napocor and Cepalco could ask for power rate increases if they want to on a quarterly basis," he said.
This along with others is among the points to be raised during the ERC hearing on July 29.
"This GRAM isn't found in the provisions of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA)," he said.
He also reiterated that contrary to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act there was no hearing done by ERC with Cepalco in the city and the city residents along with City Hall officials weren't informed about it. SC
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