House panel asks Arroyo to declare power crisis in South

(Update 3 – 6:25 PM) The House energy committee on Monday approved a proposal asking President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to declare a power crisis in Mindanao. The motion proposed by Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez was unanimously approved, “recommend[ing] that the President act under Section 71 of the Epira [Electric Power Industry Reform Act] law and that she determine and declare that there is an acute and a present, actual shortage of electricity." Rodriguez's motion also asks President Arroyo to “call Congress to a special session," allowing both chambers “to pass a joint resolution to address the Mindanao problem under terms and conditions to be set by Congress." Upon determination by the President of an imminent supply shortage, “Congress may authorize, through a joint resolution, the establishment of additional generating capacity under such terms and conditions as it may approve," Section 71 of the Epira said. The special session should be held by March 8 to immediately address the energy shortage in Mindanao, where residents of several provinces experience at least four hours of rotating brownouts everyday, Rodriguez told reporters after the hearing.
The motion was approved after Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes himself said he has recommended that the President invoke the same Epira provision to allow the government to produce additional electricity. The Department of Energy (DOE) expects rotating brownouts in Mindanao to last until June, as the El Niño phenomenon has dried up water supplies. As a result, electricity production of hydropower plants in the region has plunged by 60 percent, Reyes said in his presentation before the committee. "The Mindanao monthly power supply and demand outlook shows that until June this year the grid will continue to experience supply shortage," Reyes said. "The situation is expected to improve once the El Niño ends starting July 2010 and that the hydroplants will be back to their normal operations." In Malacañang, presidential deputy spokesperson Gary Olivar, said President Arroyo would weigh the pros and cons of declaring a power crisis in Mindanao, including allegations linking the energy shortage to possible election failure and corruption. He said that it’s “irresponsible talk." “Even now the opposition is already politicizing the issue with irresponsible talk about election failure and even corruption in procurement," Olivar said. “Let’s give the President enough time to make her way through this minefield — not only the legitimate issues for her to consider but also the innuendos being raised by overheated campaign rhetoric," Olivar added. 'Grave concerns' of power plant operators Mr. Ernesto Pantangco, president of the Philippine Independent Power Producers Association (PIPPA), said the group has "grave concerns" about the granting of emergency powers. During the hearing, Pantangco said there are still "extra measures" that the DOE can undertake to address the power problem in Mindanao, such as implementing the interruptible load program. Under the program, a distribution utility may request consumers to reduce their power use for a certain period of time. "It (emergency powers) would create uncertainty in the industry part during this time when we're having political elections," Pantangco added. Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez also expressed doubts about the ability of the two houses of Congress to come up with a quorum to deliberate on the joint resolution that may be drafted, considering that many lawmakers are running in the May 10 elections. House Speaker Prospero Nograles also expressed similar sentiments. He also reiterated his stand that there is no need to call for a special session. "Energy laws have enough powers to address crisis and to act swiftly. The executive department has enough powers on its own already," said Nograles in a text message. Should Congress fail to submit a joint resolution that would establish additional power generating capacity, Reyes said the DOE will have to resort to demand-side management. Besides encouraging consumers to cut electricity use, the energy department also recommended leasing modular generators which can each provide a megawatt of electricity. “If you can’t increase the supply, at least reduce the demand," Reyes said. Leasing modular generators that can generate 160 megawatts for Mindanao for four months can cost up to P5.5 billion, and it will take one to three months to install the generators, Reyes said. However, costs of electricity may rise under this arrangement, Reyes said. In the meantime, blackouts felt all across the country were brought about by the lack of power reserves, Dean de la Paz, consultant of the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC) told GMANews.TV. “No new capacities have been built for the past five to ten years although demand has been climbing," he said in a phone interview. As a result, when power plants break down, it automatically leads to blackouts, he said. A number of power plants have already been sold to – and currently being run by – private companies. However, investors have not been interested in expanding capacity nor in building new power plants because of the weak investment climate, said de la Paz. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV