By Rjay Zuriaga Castor
The Iloilo Electric Cooperative (ILECO) III has warned the consumers in its franchise areas to brace for a possible sudden increase in their electricity bills in May.
Atty. James G. Balsomo II, ILECO III general manager, said in a press conference on Thursday, May 9, “Because of the current situation we are facing, the power bills of our consumers are expected to increase this month.”
Balsomo explained that unlike other distribution utilities (DUs) in the region, their consumers have not felt the increase in their bills due to the emergency power supply they were able to secure.
In 2012, ILECO III entered into a power supply agreement (PSA) with Green Core Geothermal, Inc (GCGI). The PSA, approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission, began on December 26, 2022, and will end on December 25, 2030.
The PSA required GCGI to deliver a minimum of 5.50 megawatts daily and a minimum of 48,048 megawatt-hour yearly, based on the Power Supply Procurement Plan 2023 of ILECO III.
“However, this month of May, the situation is already beyond our control. It is expected that the demand will drastically increase, meaning their consumption will increase. It is expected whether their rate will remain the same,” Balsomo added.
Comparing the March to April consumption in its franchise area, ILECO III said that consumption spiked by 22.86 percent. In March, consumption was at 13,691,114 kilowatt-hours (kWh), which surged to 16,732,285 kWh in April.
He further emphasized that the increase in electricity prices in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market and the red alerts issued by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines are reasons for the surge in rates.
To alleviate the suffering of its consumers, ILECO III said it submitted a proposal to the National Electrification Administration (NEA) for an Anti-Bill Shock lending program that would not involve Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP).
“Supposedly NEA is proposing that electric cooperatives will contract a loan with Landbank on similar terms but on the part of ILECO III, we will be extending this loan without necessarily securing a loan from the LBP,” Balsomo said.
Balsomo emphasized that ILECO III “has enough funds in our coffers to provide a stop-gap measure to our consumers.”
Under its own lending program, the cooperative will provide a loan to its consumers to pay for the incremental increase in their power bills.
Balsomo explained that member-consumers will be allowed to pay on a staggered basis for the next three months for the incremental increase in their power bills.
Earlier this May, the Department of Energy and the ERC had also urged DUs to tap into the Anti-Bill Shock Lending Program of the LBP to ease the burden of Filipino households from the expected surge in electricity costs.
The government’s Anti-Bill Shock Lending Program was launched in April 2023. It stands for “Assistance to Narrow and Trim down the Incremental power cost increase via Bridge financing Initiative of LandBank to Lower and Spread out Hot summer-triggered monthly Consumption on Konsumers’ Electricity.
