By BENJIE VILLA

TARLAC CITY — It is not only the common power consumers who were kept in the dark regarding the contract entered into by this city’s lone privately-owned power service provider with an independent power producer (IPP). Local officials here were similarly surprised to learn that this city has such a thing as an IPP.

More than this, what surprised city officials here is the fact that this city’s power service provider, Tarlac Electric Enterprises, Inc. (TEEI), and the IPP, Tarlac Power Corporation (TPC), have the same owners — the prominent Romero family of Tarlac.

This controversy was publicly unearthed during the series of hearings being conducted by the city council in aid of local legislation on the anomalous purchased power adjustment (PPA) and power cost adjustment (PCA) being charged by TEEI on power consumers here.

It is not yet, however, clear since when TEEI entered into a "contract" with TPC. Besides, city councilor Abel Ladera said that they have yet to see TEEI owners’ contract with their own IPP, which is why the city council is also at a loss on how the power service provider’s PPA that is being charged on consumers for unconsumed electricity is being calculated.

At the most, he added that what they have gathered so far were "general facts," such as the TEEI management’s admission that they only derive 30% of its total power consumption from the government-owned National Power Corp. (NPC), while they draw the rest from their own TPC.

This, councilor Frank Dayao said, apparently explains the high electricity rates in this city, adding that "power consumers, ranging from the masa to Tarlac City’s upper class families, suffer more compared to other people outside Metro Manila for paying for unused electricity."

Frank Mangulabnan, regional spokesperson for Central Luzon of the broad coalition, People Opposed to Warrantless Electricity Rates (POWER), described TEEI’s scheme as "panggigisa sa taong-bayan sa sarili nilang mantika (cooking the people in their own lard)."

POWER was launched here Saturday, which was highlighted by a signature campaign, a rally and noise barrages in the city proper.

Mangulabnan added that, with this city’s power service provider and IPP having the same owners, the PPA could be "far worse" since the controversial fee that is being charged on power consumers is based on the prevailing foreign currency rates.

Generally, he explained, IPPs claim that their expenses are based on the existing foreign currency exchange rates since they import nearly all the raw materials, such as fuel, needed to generate power.

Aside from this, Mangulabnan pointed out that one of the onerous fees being included, too, in the PPA, which he said is also being kept from the public, is the so-called wage adjustment cost or WAC.

Through the WAC, he explained that power service providers such as TEEI and electric cooperatives effectively pass on to consumers the burden of shouldering their workers’ monthly salaries.