Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said yesterday that a comprehensive energy plan should be put in place to address not only the perennial power shortage in the country but also to boost Philippine exports.
Speaking over the radio in Calbayog City, Enrile explained that the high cost of power due to unstable source of energy is hurting the export enterprises because the prices of locally-made products are not competitive in the international market.
As a result, the country is relying on the contribution of some eight million Filipinos working abroad to keep the economy afloat, Enrile pointed out.
Money sent from overseas represented 12 percent of the total gross domestic product in 2008 based on the estimates of the Asian Development Bank. Some analysts said the figure could be higher in the last two years because of the global financial crisis that has slowed down exports.
Data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that OFW remittances through banks rose by 8.5 percent to $1.4 billion last January from year-ago figures. The BSP expects money from overseas workers to grow by six (6) percent in 2010 from a record $17 billion in 2009.
The veteran legislator underscored the need to put together a reliable energy program to help revive the export industry, once the country’s main source of foreign exchange.
Amid the shortfall in energy supply, the Manila Electric Co. announced last week an additional P1.20 per kilowatt-hour (kwh)starting this month after power suppliers raised the cost of power.
The country’s biggest power distributor has more than 4.71 million customers, 424,000 of them are commercial customers and 10,000 are industrial customers in 29 cities and 82 municipalities.
Since last year, Enrile has been pushing for the approval of these proposals aimed at bringing down the cost of electricity for industrial, commercial and individual consumers.
Enrile filed Senate Bill 3147 or the Uniform Franchise Tax Act, and Senate Bill 3148 or the Electricity Rate Reduction Act, which are envisioned to give immediate relief to power consumers. The proposed measures are also designed to amend the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) passed in 2001.
Power rates would have been reduced by 23 centavos per kwh for household consumers and 5 centavos to 12 centavos per kwh for business establishments had the Lower House passed the two proposals set in motion by Enrile, the most knowledgeable legislator in the power sector. /MP
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