BENGUET Electric Cooperative (Beneco) has paid around 40 percent of its loan to the National Electrification Administration (NEA) which was used for the sitio electrification program in the province of Benguet.
Beneco general manager Gerardo Versoza said aside from paying the loan, the power coop has been in constant contact with Baguio City Representative Marquez Go to look into ways on how to solve the dilemma.
"Of the P100 million of Beneco loan to NEA, we have already paid about P50 to P55 million through a combination of principle and interest cost leaving around P70 plus million more left to pay. We, however, are thankful to Congressman Go when he reiterated during the budget hearing last year for NEA and the Department of Energy how it was unfair for Beneco who was the only cooperative who took the risk to get a P100 million loan while other cooperatives did not do anything to speed up sitio electrification," Versoza said.
Last year, Beneco officials estimated the cooperative needs more than P171 million to fully energize the remaining sitios in the province.
Beneco Network Service Department manager Melchor Licoben said the firm's sitio electrification program has already completed 85 percent, with the towns of Bakun and Kabayan having below 70 percent fully electrified as of last year.
Despite having only 68 percent sitios electrified, Bakun will need at least P11 million for the program while Kabayan, with only 67 percent electrified, will need more than P13 million.
Atok will get bulk of the proposed funding with P27 million followed by Kibungan at P20 million. Mankayan will have the least with P3.9 million.
"The status at present is we will again request Congressman Go to probably expound on it, push on it when the DOE and NEA budget hearing will be held in the lower house and let's see. But our explanation to NEA is that our consumers does not want the cooperatives collections from the consumers to be used as payment for the loan," Versoza said.
The power distributor acquired the loan from the NEA and the Department of Energy under the Expanded Rural Electrification Program.
Of the 2,679 potential areas for electrification, only 2,268 were fully energized as of May 10 of last year.
"In fairness to the new NEA Administrator Edgar Masongsong, he seriously studied Beneco's situation and included in its budget the allocation of an amount to be released by NEA to Beneco who have energized the potential areas for electrification, will have to use the said allocation for payment of the loan to NEA but unfortunately the Department of Budget and Management slashes it," Versoza added.
