Napocor mulls over power perks for ecozone firms

State-run National Power Corp. is looking to extend the special energy rates offered to ecozone locators, believing that the incentives are necessary to boost the competitiveness of Philippine manufacturers.

But Napocor president Froilan A. Tampinco stressed that the proposal to extend the rates by a year, or up to December 2012, is still being studied.

“We need to study (the proposal), and we have to consider the fact that Napocor does not control major power generation capacities anymore. We have to consult with the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. to ensure that there will be no complexities,” Tampinco said, without explaining what those complexities were. “But it should be resolved soon. We’ll have to come out with a decision before the agreement lapses on Dec. 25 this year.”

Earlier, power distributor Manila Electric Co., the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) and the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Inc. (Seipi) submitted a letter to Napocor for the extension of the “Ecozone Rate Program” (ERP).

The program was an offshoot of a memorandum of agreement between Meralco and Napocor, which covered the grant of special rates for Peza-accredited industries. The grant will cease once the transition supply contract between Meralco and Napocor ends on Dec. 25.

The PSALM board will ultimately decide on the grant of special rates, Tampinco said.

Meralco executive Oscar Reyes earlier said in a letter to Napocor that the extension of the ERP would help “achieve operational and economic efficiency and enhance competitiveness of Philippine products in the global market.”

The ERP is currently benefiting 279 Meralco customers in industrial areas. These locators account for 43 percent of total Philippine manufacturing exports estimated at $19 billion.

“Considering the benefits of the ERP to the economy and the country as a whole, there is a greater reason and necessity to extend the term of our MOA to ensure an affordable supply of power to vital industries and enhance their competitiveness in the global market,” Reyes had said.