House Deputy Minority leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate and Bayan Muna chairman former Rep. Neri Colmenares on Sunday (April 25) dared President Rodrigo Duterte to also look into excesses of monopolies in the power industry that have been holding consumers hostage in order to increase electricity rates.

Zarate and Colmenares said Duterte should rattle power monopolies in the way he did water oligarchs when he pointed to the onerous concession agreements for water distribution.

"The constant threat of thinning power supply and brown outs in exchange for higher power rates or more onerous power supply agreements has been the bane of consumers for decades now," said Zarate.

He noted that yellow and red alert warnings have been issued as a “signal that demand has caught up with the existing supply and that there is a need to start building capacity.

However, Zarate noted that “we need to have a comprehensive nationalized power plan to achieve this.” “At the minimum the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) must be reviewed and drastically amended, or, at best even repealed out right so that it would be the government that would make the energy plan to be implemented and not just rely on the whim and greed of power oligarchs," the opposition lawmaker.

"As it is, with the EPIRA, electricity rates have increased more than 100% since its enactment in 2001, with periodic yellow and red alerts along with hours long brown outs especially in the provinces," Zarate said.

On the other hand, Colmenares said that "a strong case in point are the numerous forced power plant shutdowns happening now, that are causing yellow alerts and jacking up power rates as well as the cross ownership of generation and distribution companies," "It is the owners of the generation companies (gencos) that should shoulder the additional cost of power that was caused by their plant shutdowns," said Colmenares.

“EPIRA allowed electricity prices to go up if the energy supply is low as a result of plant shutdowns. This ironically allows the gencos to earn higher profits by shutting down some plants to create an artificial supply shortage. These gencos should not escape liability by passing on to the public the higher electricity costs resulting from these shutdowns,” he pointed out.

It will be recalled that in 2013, the Energy Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy found basis to conclude that energy players colluded to jack up electricity prices in the spot market in the midst of simultaneous power plant shutdowns.

“This time and next year the supposed shortage is a phantom shortage meant to scare the public to pay for high electricity rates and push for the immediate operation of dubious power plants like the Atimonan One," Colmenares said.

Bayan Muna Duterte: “It’s look into abuses of power industry monopolies” House Deputy Minority leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate and Bayan Muna chairman former Rep. Neri Colmenares on Sunday (April 25) dared President Rodrigo Duterte to also look into excesses of monopolies in the power industry that have been holding consumers hostage in order to increase electricity rates.

Zarate and Colmenares said Duterte should rattle power monopolies in the way he did water oligarchs when he pointed to the onerous concession agreements for water distribution.

"The constant threat of thinning power supply and brown outs in exchange for higher power rates or more onerous power supply agreements has been the bane of consumers for decades now," said Zarate.

He noted that yellow and red alert warnings have been issued as a “signal that demand has caught up with the existing supply and that there is a need to start building capacity.

However, Zarate noted that “we need to have a comprehensive nationalized power plan to achieve this.” “At the minimum the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) must be reviewed and drastically amended, or, at best even repealed out right so that it would be the government that would make the energy plan to be implemented and not just rely on the whim and greed of power oligarchs," the opposition lawmaker.

"As it is, with the EPIRA, electricity rates have increased more than 100% since its enactment in 2001, with periodic yellow and red alerts along with hours long brown outs especially in the provinces," Zarate said.

On the other hand, Colmenares said that "a strong case in point are the numerous forced power plant shutdowns happening now, that are causing yellow alerts and jacking up power rates as well as the cross ownership of generation and distribution companies," "It is the owners of the generation companies (gencos) that should shoulder the additional cost of power that was caused by their plant shutdowns," said Colmenares.

“EPIRA allowed electricity prices to go up if the energy supply is low as a result of plant shutdowns. This ironically allows the gencos to earn higher profits by shutting down some plants to create an artificial supply shortage. These gencos should not escape liability by passing on to the public the higher electricity costs resulting from these shutdowns,” he pointed out.

It will be recalled that in 2013, the Energy Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy found basis to conclude that energy players colluded to jack up electricity prices in the spot market in the midst of simultaneous power plant shutdowns.

“This time and next year the supposed shortage is a phantom shortage meant to scare the public to pay for high electricity rates and push for the immediate operation of dubious power plants like the Atimonan One," Colmenares said.

Bayan Muna Duterte: “It’s look into abuses of power industry monopolies” House Deputy Minority leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate and Bayan Muna chairman former Rep. Neri Colmenares on Sunday (April 25) dared President Rodrigo Duterte to also look into excesses of monopolies in the power industry that have been holding consumers hostage in order to increase electricity rates.

Zarate and Colmenares said Duterte should rattle power monopolies in the way he did water oligarchs when he pointed to the onerous concession agreements for water distribution.

"The constant threat of thinning power supply and brown outs in exchange for higher power rates or more onerous power supply agreements has been the bane of consumers for decades now," said Zarate.

He noted that yellow and red alert warnings have been issued as a “signal that demand has caught up with the existing supply and that there is a need to start building capacity.

However, Zarate noted that “we need to have a comprehensive nationalized power plan to achieve this.” “At the minimum the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) must be reviewed and drastically amended, or, at best even repealed out right so that it would be the government that would make the energy plan to be implemented and not just rely on the whim and greed of power oligarchs," the opposition lawmaker.

"As it is, with the EPIRA, electricity rates have increased more than 100% since its enactment in 2001, with periodic yellow and red alerts along with hours long brown outs especially in the provinces," Zarate said.

On the other hand, Colmenares said that "a strong case in point are the numerous forced power plant shutdowns happening now, that are causing yellow alerts and jacking up power rates as well as the cross ownership of generation and distribution companies," "It is the owners of the generation companies (gencos) that should shoulder the additional cost of power that was caused by their plant shutdowns," said Colmenares.

“EPIRA allowed electricity prices to go up if the energy supply is low as a result of plant shutdowns. This ironically allows the gencos to earn higher profits by shutting down some plants to create an artificial supply shortage. These gencos should not escape liability by passing on to the public the higher electricity costs resulting from these shutdowns,” he pointed out.

It will be recalled that in 2013, the Energy Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy found basis to conclude that energy players colluded to jack up electricity prices in the spot market in the midst of simultaneous power plant shutdowns.

“This time and next year the supposed shortage is a phantom shortage meant to scare the public to pay for high electricity rates and push for the immediate operation of dubious power plants like the Atimonan One," Colmenares said.