ENERGY firm Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI) is the eager beaver as far as complying with the Department of Energy’s Circular 2018-08-0021. Of all the power plants in Cebu Province, it is TVI that shows up before Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to ask the Province to take its share of its total electricity sales.
The DOE circular follows Republic Act 7639 (Department of Energy Act if 1992), which mandated the DOE to devise ways of giving direct benefits to the host areas. It amends the implementing rules and regulations under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001.
Section 6 of the DOE circular states that the financial benefits shall be allocated in this manner: 25 percent of one-centavo per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for Development and Livelihood Fund (DLF); and 25 percent of P.0025/kWh for reforestation, watershed management, health and or environment enhancement fund (RWMHEEF).
The DLF and the RWMHEEF shall be distributed thus: five percent goes to the community and the affected residents; 20 percent to the host barangay; 35 percent to the host municipality; 30 percent to the host province; five percent to the host Indigenous Cultural Communities and Indigenous Peoples; and five percent to the host region.
TVI and Capitol seal their memorandum of agreement (MOA) on the sales share. Garcia urged the other power producers—including Kepco SPC Power Corp. in Naga City and Global Business Power in Toledo City—to prepare their MOAs as well.
The TVI is a joint venture of Aboitiz Corp. and Vivant Corp., at an 80-20 deal, operating a 340-megawatt baseload power plant in Barangay Bato, Toledo City.
“We had to ask for what is rightfully ours. With our MOA with TVI, our shares will directly go to our trust account that will be opened by the provincial treasurer,” said Garcia.
Thanks to this law, additional revenues to our coffers are most welcome. It is specific as far as where the funds should be spent, a welcome addition to the Province’s coffers and ultimately to the Cebuanos.