ALBAY 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda said Tuesday he expects the bill seeking to renew the franchise of power distributor Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) will “sail smoothly” through the House of Representatives’ plenary.
The House Committee on Legislative Franchises on Monday approved, in principle, the proposal to renew the franchise.
“I thank Chairman Gus Tambunting for his fair and extensive evaluation of the proposed extension of the Meralco franchise, which is possibly the single most important private bill for industrial policy in this country,” said Salceda, one of the lawmakers who had filed the bill.
ALBAY Second District Rep. Joey Salceda
Subject to amendments, the House Committee of Franchises led by Tambunting approved House Bills (HBs) 9793, 9813, and 10317.
“Meralco is an example of how service reliability can create economic growth and development,” Salceda said on Tuesday.
“Using estimates from the [Philippine Statistics Authority Input-Output] tables and data from the ERC on outages due to power supply by [distribution utilities], the country would gain a net [Gross Value-Added] of P204.29 billion every year if all its [electric cooperatives and distribution utilities] performed like Meralco,” he said.
“I expect the franchise bill to sail smoothly through the floor. The role of the franchise review process in Congress is to see whether a grantee has complied with its mandates. In this regard, there can be little question,” Salceda said.
Meralco’s current franchise will expire in 2028. House bills filed for Meralco’s franchise are HB 9793, filed by Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda on Jan. 18, 2024; HB 9813, filed by Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez on Jan. 22, 2024; and HB 10317, filed by Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco on May 2, 2024.
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