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Thursday, January 05, 2006
Ong: So Trenas solves the problem
By Ted Aldwin Ong
THE headline in this paper last January 3 reads: "Power situation stable: Trenas." It was not a shocking headline for the power situation in Iloilo City has been stable ever since.
According to Mayor Trenas, it was Energy Secretary Popo Lotilla who moved for the said stability of Iloilo City's power situation and not the Energy Regulatory Commission. Whoever it is, who cares? But it sounds good news for it only takes a phone call from Secretary Lotilla to assure the Ilonggo consumers that the situation is stable.
It was only Panay Electric Company (Peco) and Mirant-Panay Power Corporation who were brewing a blackout situation. Of course with the "support" of Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Trenas and some of our respectable elected city officials.
What made the situation a little "unstable" is the alleged fuel supply shortage of Mirant-PPC. But according to Mayor Trenas "the alleged January 8 fuel run out will not happen." Of course it will not happen and not because of Secretary Lotilla but for the good reason that Shell Philippines and Mirant-PPC has a fuel supply agreement.
According to some insiders in Shell, there was no fuel shortage contrary to claims of Mirant-PPC especially with the angle that Peco has not been paying them the exact amount as an impact of the P2.00 per kilowatt-hour reduction ordered by the ERC and the Court of Appeals.
So what is this fuel shortage? The fuel supply of Mirant-PPC is bound to run out despite of an agreement between Shell Philippines and Mirant-PPC because according to insiders in Shell, the management of Mirant-PPC refuses to accept or receive the fuel delivery of the fuel provider.
In effect, the supporters of Peco and Mirant-PPC was right all along - there was no power shortage, a blackout will not take place and Mirant-PPC will not shut down operations because it is a fact that they are not losing profit. These people might have been thinking that their scare tactics moves us. Of course, the Freedom from Debt Coalition knows that this is plain and simple tactical work of independent power producers and their partner distribution utilities.
Furthermore, Mirant-PPC attempted to made its point clear with a position paper through its counsel Hans Sayno which states, and I quote: "As to who and where did the complainant (referring to Atty. Romeo Gerochi and Atty. Judel Romero) get the idea that PPC will shut down in the future is plain and simple guesswork. Even assuming for the sake of argument that there are speculations and conjectures along this line the same are not facts."
I believe that the "black-out-shut-down scenario" that Mirant-PPC was brewing is to scare the consumers in light of its pending petition before the ERC for its application for an amendment to the power purchase agreement between PECO and Mirant-PPC.
No wonder Mayor Jerry Trenas was not disturbed of the hostage drama that Peco and Mirant-PPC was painting all along.
Now the conclusion, I believe that the statement of FDC-Iloilo's chairperson lawyer Roming Gerochi was accurate enough when he referred to Mayor Trenas as the new spokesperson of PECO and Mirant-PPC. My fellow Ilonggo consumers, we are expecting more defense stance from the new spokesperson of Peco and Mirant-PPC on the coming days. (tao.ssi@gmail.com)
(January 5, 2006 issue)
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