(MANILA BULLETIN)

An appeal to block the granting of a new legislative franchise to First Laguna Electric Cooperative Inc. (FLECO) has reached the House of Representatives. The appeal came from a group of mayors from ten 10 of the 11 municipalities being served by FLECO. The local officials have complained about the cooperative's high electricity rates and poor services. According to the petition signed by the mayors, FLECO has failed to mitigate the increasing electricity prices for its captive market, violating its mandate under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA, IRR Rule 7, Section 4h) to supply electricity in the least cost manner. The mayors urged the House of Representatives as well as the Senate to consider the grievances and concerns of the municipalities served by FLECO in reviewing the renewal application of the electric cooperative. "We urge the lawmakers to reflect on the wider ramifications and prioritize the collective interests of the community over the electric cooperative's own interests," said Pakil Mayor Vincent Soriano. The House Committee on Legislative Franchises is currently chaired by Parañaque City 2nd district Rep. Gus Tambunting. The petition was signed by the local government executives from Cavinti, Famy, Kalayaan, Mabitac, Paete, Pagsanjan, Pakil, Pangil, Siniloan, and Sta. Maria. FLECO applied for franchise renewal in December last year through House Bill (HB) No. 6484 in the ongoing 19th Congress. It holds an existing franchise granted by the National Electrification Commission in May 1978, which will expire on May 16, 2028. The mayors said that FLECO's residential rate in February this year was PP14.9831/ kilowatt hour (kWh), P3.3004 higher than its rate in February 2019 of P11.6827/kWh. In comparsion, Meralco's rate was only P10.8895/kWh in February this year. The seemingly high electricity rate of FLECO is putting a serious economic strain on the residents and businesses in the 11 towns since the electricity bills, according to the petition, already represent roughly 11 percent of Laguna's per-capita gross domestic product (GDP) in 2021, or P271,470 per capita. Despite imposing high electricity rates, there are frequent and prolonged brownouts in the towns, resulting in costly disruptions of residential and commercial activities and stoppage of production processes. "We are very concerned that due to FLECO's unreliable service, investment inflows in our towns have become anemic, retarding the growth of our local economy and the improvement of our constituents' welfare and living conditions," Soriano added. This is despite the proximity of FLECO's franchise to economically developed areas in the south. Most of the 11 Laguna towns in FLECO's franchise areas have the potential to become commercial and tourist hubs. However, FLECO's inability to put up necessary power infrastructure in a timely manner has dampened investors' enthusiasm and limited commercial and industrial developments in the municipalities, the mayors said.