A CONSULTANT for one of the top power providers in the country assured consumers that the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) would have insignificant impact on the price of electricity derived from coal.
Arturo Milan of the Aboitiz Group of Companies said Train’s impact on electricity is minimal, and that the imposition of excise tax on coal should not cause alarm.
Milan, however, made it clear that he can only cite the case of Davao Light and Power Company Inc., the electricity provider in Davao City and its service areas in Davao del Norte.
He said electricity derived from coal would mean additional three centavos per kilowatt hour in 2018, six centavos in 2019, and nine centavos in 2020.
The subsequent rate may go up or down depending on the price of coal.
In Davao, Milan said the average household consumption of electricity is at 200 kilowatts per month, which would cost about P60 with the additional tax of three centavos.
Mindanao Development Authority assistant secretary Romeo Montenegro said Minda is closely monitoring the situation in terms of electricity impact in Mindanao, considering that 70 percent of the supply for energy is sourced from coal-fired plants.
But he said, “The island must not rely heavily on coal and make sure we can integrate renewable energy in terms of fuel and energy so that we are not subject to market volatility on the exchange rate fluctuation, the excise tax and possible levy of export from outside sources.”
Montenegro said Minda is still pushing mix energy.
He said Mindanao today sources its coal requirements in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. (pna)
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