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GOVERNMENT-RUN National Power Corp. (Napocor) said
Thursday that it is extending its technical and
financial expertise to Albay Electric Cooperative (Aleco)
to enable the ailing cooperative to recover from its
huge indebtedness and its high system losses.
Napocor
said it signed a one-year Operation and Maintenance
(O&M) contract with Aleco to formalize the start of the
rehabilitation program for Aleco.
Among
the problems that are expected to be addressed by the
rehabilitation plan, according to Napocor, are Aleco’s
outstanding P1.6-billion obligations with Napocor and
its runaway system losses, which have been placed at 23
percent.
Under
the O&M Contract, Napocor will be reviewing and auditing
the management procedures of Aleco to improve the
efficiency of its system. This, in turn, is expected to
improve Aleco’s revenues and enable it to pay off its
debts.
The O&M
contract also calls for the National Transmission Corp.
(Transco) to help Aleco bring down its system losses
from 23 percent to 14 percent within a year’s time.
Napocor
said the rehabilitation program hopes to improve the
reliability of Aleco’s distribution system to enable it
to provide adequate and dependable power supply to its
customers.
Prior to
the signing of the O&M agreement, Napocor had formed an
Aleco Rehabilitation Team, which is tasked to implement
and monitor the rehabilitation program of Aleco, which
included a four-man management team headed by Napocor
vice president Lorenzo Marcelo of the Small Power
Utilities Group.
Signing
the O&M contract in Legaspi City, Albay, were Napocor
president Cyril del Callar, Aleco chairman and
president Rodolfo Bonafe and Aleco acting general
manager Samson Madrideo, which concluded more than
three months of negotiations between key Napocor and
Aleco officials.
The
rehabilitation program for Aleco is in compliance with
President Arroyo’s directive to Napocor to assist in the
operation and management of the cooperative, and to help
Aleco improve its financial viability.
Based in
Legaspi City, Aleco services the entire Albay province,
including such towns as Daraga, Camalig, Manito, Tiwi,
Tabaco and Guinobatan, as well as the island of
Rapu-Rapu.
Albay
Gov. Joey Sarte Salceda, the proponent of the Napocor
takeover of Aleco’s management and rehabitation,
witnessed the signing held at the Capitol provincial
disaster-management office.
The
takeover by Napocor is being contested by businessman
and Sto. Domingo town mayor Celso de los Angeles Jr.,
who said it was a violation of the Electric Power
Industry Reform Act. He also doubted whether the Napocor
would be beneficial to the ailing power cooperative.
Aleco
has more or less 110,000 consumers, with the provincial
government of Albay as the biggest consumer but with the
highest unpaid electric bills as well, according to the
records of the Committee on Energy of Congress.
Earlier,
Mayor de los Angeles declared he would file a petition
in court for a temporary restraining order to stop the
takeover of Aleco by Napocor. He argues that the best
recourse for Aleco was to declare bankruptcy and for it
to be revived with the injection of “new faces” in its
management to stop the “greed and corruption” that had
been fleecing the cooperative.
De los
Angeles had earlier offered to buy Aleco with a
guarantee of sound management and cheaper electric rate.
However,
he said his letter of intent was ignored by the Aleco
management and the people behind Napocor entry,
referring to Governor Salceda.
Salceda
said the Napocor’s takeover of Aleco’s operation and
management was approved by President Arroyo on July 3,
2007, in a Cabinet meeting.
Aleco
has been indebted to Napocor, NEA and the Transco
amounting to some P800 million before it was devastated
by supertyphoon Reming on November 30, 2006.
Rehabilitation of the cooperative, however, ballooned
its debt to P1.8 billion, prompting Salceda to negotiate
for Napocor’s takeover.
Rep. Al
Francis Bichara (Albay, Second District) and Legazpi
City Mayor Noel Rosal joined Salceda’s move to have
Napocor take over Aleco.
Salceda
defended Napocor’s takeover as the best option to stop
threats of disconnection. He said the MOA, which is good
for one-year operation, calls for no changes in the
cooperative structure and the protection of labor
rights.
Aleco
general manager Sammy Madrideo said the physical
turnover of the Aleco’s operation and management will
start on July 26, 2008. |
