Amlig Kuryente, Power Watch to CENECO BOD: What vindication and simple neglect?

“You have the audacity in your several press conference to declare yourselves cleared, exonerated, no offense and vindicated and poised your 30-day National Electrification Administration (NEA) suspension as simple neglect, while your consumers are groaning in pain from the unexplained rise of their monthly electricity rates, unexplained brownouts due to their unannounced load shedding scheme, strict implementation of the One-Bill Policy, non-implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) provisions with CENECO employees, inability to refund P236 Million as ordered by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and the likelihood of a commercial loan to be shouldered again by the paying consumers.”

Thus said former Councilor and Amlig Tubig, Amlig Kuryente lead convenor Wilson Gamboa, Jr as he chided, in a press conference last July 21, 2022, at the Negros Press Club, the CENECO-Board of Directors (BOD) as “shameless and calloused”, they could have easily gotten away with more or less P368 Million, because of the “illegal” one-year extension of the KEPCO SPC POWER CORP. (KSP) contract were it not for the vigilance of the consumers/members/owners of CENECO – the cause of all these miseries now suffered by the impoverished consumers-members-owners.

He reiterated that CENECO contracted a 40-Megawatt baseload with KSP at the rate of P5.42 per kHr that expired last May 25, 2021; the BOD illegally extended it, while the KSP accepted it, at a reduced 20-Megawatt for one year, in the same amount of P5.42 per kHr as against the winning Competitive Selection Process (CSP) price of P3.29 per kHr, the difference is P2.13 (P5.42 less P3.29) orf an estimated P368 Million for one year – all shouldered by the consumers-members-owners.

Gamboa said that the BOD was caught “red-handed”, and they now charged consumers the Power Sector and Asset Management Corporation Time of Use Rate (PSALM-TOU Rate) in the amount of P3.70, adding, “The BOD meantime is still in hot water because they have to pay the P1.72 difference (P5.42 KSP Rate less P3.70 PSALM Rate) or the amount of P280,298,294.20 up to December 2021 to KSP”

He explained that subsequently, the KSP declared and notify CENECO with a “NOTICE OF DEFAULT” of this P280,298,294.20 for NON-PAYMENT thereby cutting the power supply of electricity to CENECO from KSP.

Consequently, Gamboa explained, CENECO now is purchasing power at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) in cold CASH and payment done every 22nd of every month in the amount from P8 to P14 per kHr passed on to consumers at the same time putting burden-pressure-upset on their cash flow standing.

He said this explains therefore the “unexplained rise in our monthly payment of electricity rates, unannounced brownouts under their load shedding program, to “economize” baseload capacity, strict implementation of the “One Bill Policy”, or the “you don’t pay, we immediately disconnect policy”, non-payment of the CENECO employees’ benefits based on the CBA way back 2018 and worst, they are unable to refund the P236 Million as ordered by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Gamboa further explained that the WESM-related burden on the CENECO cash flow could lead the BOD to avail of commercial loans with staggering effects on the members-consumers-owners who, again, will have to pay for it.

CENECO now is in a dire financial strait and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) which will eventually lead to its privatization in 2025, when its franchise contract will expire.

Without recourse, he added, “They are now doing everything, lying and misleading to cover-up their acts with the intention to defraud CENECO and its consumer-members-owners tantamount therefore to grave misconduct, dishonesty, gross neglect of duty, conduct prejudicial to the interest of the cooperative and consumer-members and gross insubordination.”* (GABS)