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Conspiracy by Government Agencies in the Power Sector to Swindle 20 Billion Pesos from Mindanao Power Consumers through the IPPA for the Mt. Apo Geothermal Power Plant
By David A. Tauli, President, Mindanao Coalition of Power Consumers

In February 2015, the rate for electricity generated by the Mt. Apo geothermal power plant was increased from less than 3.00 pesos per kilowatt-hour to around 5.20 pesos per kWh. The impact of the rate increase is that Mindanao power consumers who are getting part of their supply of electricity from Mt. Apo will be shelling out additional (at 2.40 pesos per kWh in excess of what they were paying before the rate increase), unreasonable and unjust payments of around 2.0 billion pesos per year, or a total of 20 billion pesos over the ten years remaining that the Mt. Apo generation is contracted to the PSALM-NPC. The government agencies in the power sector (PSALM, DOE and ERC) claim that the increase in the rate of Mt. Apo is a legitimate result of the implementation of the Independent Power Producer Administrator (IPPA) process. This is a false claim. The Apo-IPPA process has been corrupted from beginning to end, resulting in the Apo-IPPA being an elaborate scam, carried out with the connivance of government agencies that are supposed to protect the interest of consumers, and resulting in the transfer of money from Mindanao power consumers to the principals of the scam, the PSALM-NPC and their private generating company partner.

We are showing here that the implementation by PSALM of the IPPA process for Mt. Apo was characterized by the following corruption of the process:
1. The PSALM Corporation violated its own internal rules governing the IPPA process, including the principle that the IPPA-ization of any power plant should not change existing contracts for the generation of the power plant.
2. The Department of Energy allowed the PSALM to violate the requirement in the EPIRA that the privatization of NPC-owned power plants should not result in changing the contractual obligations of the PSALM-NPC.
3. The Energy Regulatory Commission approved the increase in the rate of the Mt. Apo geothermal power plant by ignoring the normal regulatory procedures for changing the rates of power plants regulated by the ERC, and using an inappropriate (if not illegal) method of rate determination for regulated power plants.

We are claiming that the increase in the rate of the Mt. Apo geothermal power plant is illegitimate, and that the government agencies in the power sector have, in effect, conspired to defraud Mindanao power consumers in the amount of 20 billion pesos over a period of ten years. There may have been no deliberate planning on the part of the government agencies to gyp Mindanao power consumers, but the corrupt implementation of the IPPA process for the Mt. Apo GPP could not have been consummated without their cooperation in the process.
The enumerated anomalies were carried out by the government agencies under their former heads, who by the grace of God have been replaced by the current heads. We are appealing to these current heads of offices (ERC Chairman Jose Vicente B. Salazar, DOE Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada and PSALM President Lourdes S. Alzona) to correct the errors of their predecessors, and thereby: (a) restore the rate of the Mt. Apo geothermal power plant to the pre-IPPA rate of less than 3.00 per kWh; and (b) restore the pre-IPPA contracts of PSALM customers in Mindanao for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP.

These anomalies concerning the Mt. Apo IPPA were previously communicated to the PSALM, DOE and ERC, mostly by the MCPC but also by the AMRECO and other NGOs. However, nothing was done by the previous heads of these government agencies to correct the errors (or crime) of their agencies. We are appealing to the present heads of offices of these government agencies to reverse the unjust decisions made by the former heads, and end the injustice and exploitation being perpetrated against the Mindanao power consumers.

PSALM Violation of Internal Rules Governing the IPPA Process
Among the rules established by the PSALM in the IPPA-ization of power plants under contract to the PSALM was that the IPPA process should not change existing contractual obligations of the PSALM for the power plant being transferred to an IPP Administrator. This rule was followed in the IPPA-ization of the power plants in Luzon and the Visayas, including the first group subjected to IPPA: Sual and Pagbilao coal-fueled power plants, the 345-MW San Roque multipurpose hydro power plant, the 70MW Bakun hydro power plant and the 36 megawatts of Benguet mini-hydro power plants.
If this rule was followed in Mindanao, the pre-IPPA customers of PSALM for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP should continue to receive their contracted allocation of the generation of Mt. Apo, and at the pre-IPPA ERC-approved rate of less than 3.00 pesos per kWh. Instead, the PSALM cancelled all contracts for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP, entered into new contracts with about a dozen electric cooperatives for the Mt. Apo generation (including 10 MW to BUSECO and also 10 MW to MORESCO 1), and increased the rate by an additional 2.40 pesos per kWh to be collected by the IPP Administrator for the new contracts.
The other rule violated by the PSALM in the implementation of the Apo-IPPA was that IPPA-ization should be carried out only where the WESM was in operation, in Luzon and the Visayas but not in Mindanao. This rule was made to ensure that the selected IPP Administrator could competitively secure power supply contracts for the uncontracted portion of the generation of the power plant being subjected to the IPPA process. There was an attempt on the part of the DOE, in connivance with the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMC), to impose a competitive electricity market in Mindanao, called the Interim Mindanao Electricity Market (IMEM), which can now be seen as intended to justify the implementation of the IPPA process in Mindanao. However, Mindanao power consumers fought against this IMEM, and the DOE eventually suspended its operation, thereby removing the justification for carrying out the IPPA process for Mindanao power plants. (This IMEM itself was an anomaly, indicative of the corruption of the power sector agencies under their former heads, since high prices of electricity is the certain result of establishing a competitive market for electricity at a time of electric power and energy shortage. But this story has been told elsewhere.)

Negligence of the DOE in the Mt. Apo IPPA
The IRR of the EPIRA provides that: “The sale, transfer or disposition of NPC assets shall not affect existing NPC contractual obligations.”
Although it was the PSALM that made the changes in their contractual obligations for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP, the DOE also bears responsibility for the Apo-IPPA scam because it has the general supervision over the PSALM. The DOE on its own could have prevented the PSALM from acting in violation of the EPIRA.
The DOE also could have stopped the implementation of the IPPA process in Mindanao because of the absence of a competitive electricity market. But the DOE clearly did not want to stop a money-making venture of an agency it was supervising. Never mind that that money would come from swindling power consumers.

ERC Violation of Regulatory Procedures for Increasing the Rates of Regulated Power Plants
The Mt. Apo GPP belongs to the group of NPC-owned or controlled power plants in Mindanao, whose rates were approved by the ERC in 2002 and are still in effect today. Since that year the PSALM has submitted applications to amend the rates of their power plants in Mindanao, but no application has been submitted by the PSALM to change the Basic Rates of the power plants.
The ERC has established the process for approving applications to increase the basic rates of ERC-regulated power plants. Under this established procedure, the amount of increase in basic rates is directly dependent on justifiable increases in the capital expenses or operating and maintenance expenses on the power plant. Applying for an increase in the basic rate of the Mt. Apo GPP could not be justified under the normal process of approval for rate increases of regulated power plants because no substantial increase in capital or O&M expenses on Mt. Apo has been made by the Energy Development Corporation, the present owner of the Mt. Apo GPP.
Thus, the ERC treated the application for approval of the rates of Mt. Apo as though it were a new power plant whose basic rate still needs to be determined. The ERC conveniently forgot that the Mt. Apo GPP has been generating electricity for more than ten years delivered to consumers at an ERC-approved basic rate of less than 3.00 pesos per kWh. Throughout the ERC proceedings over the rate application for Mt. Apo, it was never mentioned that the power plant has an existing ERC-approved rate and that its total generation was already contracted to PSALM customers.
But even if the Mt. Apo GPP were treated as a new power plant for which basic rates need to be determined, the ERC would have to follow the procedure for rate determination that was established by the ERC. If the procedure were properly followed, the exorbitant rate 5.20 pesos per kWh would not have resulted. So the ERC also violated their own procedures and principles, and ruled that the entire payment made to PSALM by the IPP Administrator (for winning the IPPA bidding) will be recovered from customers of the Mt. Apo GPP. This was an addition to the recovery from customers of the payments being made by PSALM to EDC the owner of the Mt. Apo GPP, in the amount of 3.034 pesos per kWh which was determined by the ERC to be the Energy Charge. This so-called Energy Charge (Surprise!) is exactly what would have been the basic rate of the Mt. Apo GPP if it were unbundled from the present PSALM portfolio of Mindanao power plants.
So here’s the crooked deal for the Apo-IPPA as approved by the ERC: PSALM awards the IPPA contract to FDC-Misamis at a price of 128 million pesos per month, the entire amount to be recovered from consumers getting power from Mt. Apo; and in addition the consumers will pay the rate of 3.034 pesos per kWh which is being paid by PSALM to the EDC the owner of the Mt. Apo GPP.
Were there any additional expense made on the geothermal power plant to improve its capacity or its efficiency? None. So why should consumers pay an additional 2.40 pesos per kWh to what they were already paying before the Apo-IPPA? To pay the additional amount that the PSALM would earn for selling the IPPA contract. Legalized highway robbery is what this is.
To say it another way appropriate to Mindanao, the ERC, the PSALM and FDC-Misamis played a moro-moro in the application for the approval of the new rates for the Mt. Apo GPP that resulted in Mindanao power consumers paying 5.20 pesos per kWh for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP, for which they were paying less than 3.00 per kWh before the Apo-IPPA scam.

Government Agencies in the Power Sector Could Stop the Swindling of Mindanao Power Consumers
Each of the government agencies in the power sector (DOE, ERC and PSALM) could, motu proprio, stop the swindling of Mindanao power consumers through the IPPA-ization of the Mt. Apo GPP. They could investigate the foregoing allegations concerning each government agency, and carry out corrective measures to stop the effects of the anomalous IPPA process that has resulted in the swindling of Mindanao power consumers. And also refund the amounts already extorted from consumers by the Apo-IPPA scam. All it requires is the will to act on behalf of Mindanao power consumers by each of the heads of the government agencies. Such a will for the welfare of consumers was absent from the previous heads of offices of the DOE, ERC and PSALM, as shown by the consummation of the Apo-IPPA scam and other similar exploitation of Mindanao power consumers. Those government officials were apparently beholden to the private-sector generating companies, and they consistently acted in support of the profit-seeking undertakings of these gencos. Either that or they were grossly incompetent to carry out the responsibilities of their positions.
Our hope is that the current heads of offices are far better than their predecessors.

Distribution Utility Companies (Those Not Participating in the Apo-IPPA Scam) Could Stop the Swindling
Only about a dozen electric cooperatives are involved in the Apo-IPPA scam. (It is not just a coincidence that these are the same dirty dozen electric cooperatives that have contracted for long term power supply at exorbitant rates from the FDC-Misamis 405-MW coal power plant.) However, the customers of the other DUs are also suffering from a slight increase in the rates of their power supply because of the Apo-IPPA scam. This is the result of the cancellation by the PSALM of the pre-IPPA contracts of these other DUs for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP. The other DUs have to source from other generating plants (usually oil-fueled and therefore at higher rates) the power supply that they used to get from Mt. Apo. The higher rates for power supply are of course passed through to the customers of these other DUs.
Any of these non-corrupt DUs could end the Apo-IPPA scam by filing suit against the PSALM for its arbitrary cancellation of the power supply contracts for the generation of the Mt. Apo GPP. This should result in the restoration of the pre-IPPA contracts for Mt. Apo, and at the pre-IPPA rate of less than 3.00 pesos per kWh.
That none of the other ECs and the investor-owned DUs have filed such a suit against the PSALM is probably because of the fact that DUs could simply pass on the increased rates to their customers. But also because these other DUs are trying to curry favor with the PSALM. Contracts for the low-cost generation of the Agus-Pulangui hydro power plants are up for negotiation by the end of 2016, and it would not be good for any DU to get the ire of the PSALM, which can arbitrarily give these contracts to its favored clients.
There seems to be no more heroes left among the distribution utility companies in Mindanao, while there are about a dozen certified scoundrels among the ECs. Where are you GM Sergio Dagooc, president of the AMRECO? Where are you GM Jose Raul A. Saniel, national president of the PHILRECA? Where are you CEPALCO? Has the passion for consumers’ welfare died with RCA?

So What Can Consumer Groups Do?
The present dereliction of duty on the part of the non-corrupt DUs in Mindanao leaves us with the last recourse for stopping the Apo-IPPA scam: Organize or strengthen consumer groups in each of the franchise areas of the corrupt electric cooperatives in order to carry out legal actions against the Apo-IPPA scam, and street actions in the event of the failure of legal action to attain justice for power consumers. The legal recourses include the following:
1. File petitions with the ERC to reverse the increase in the rates of the Mt. Apo GPP on the ground that the increase was approved in violation of the normal procedures of the ERC in approving rate increases for regulated power plants.
2. File petitions in the regional trial courts versus the corrupt ECs for entering into contracts for power supply without going through a least-cost acquisition process as required by the EPIRA and the Department of Energy.
3. In the event of refusal of the ERC to reverse the rates of the Mt. Apo GPP, file a case at the Court of Appeals versus the ERC for abuse of authority in approving increase in rates of regulated power plants in violation of the existing procedures of the ERC for such approval.

At the street fighting level, which should be carried out only if the legal activities fail, the possibilities include:
1. Carry out signature campaigns to recall the GMs and BODs of the corrupt electric cooperatives.
2. Carry out campaigns to stop payment by all member-consumers of the corrupt electric cooperatives of the increase in the rates due to the Apo-IPPA scam.
3. Bring this issue to the attention of the national candidates of the PNOY administration, particularly Manuel “Mar” Araneta Roxas II, so that they could address the problem in order to get the support of the Mindanao power consumers. Do not vote for them otherwise.

With all of the foregoing measures that can be carried out versus the Apo-IPPA scam – by the government agencies, by stalwart DUs, or by Mindanao power consumers – I do not doubt that the Apo-IPPA scam will be ended eventually, and all moneys refunded that have so far been extorted from consumers by the scam.

November 11, 2015

Install xRDP with Vino and x11vnc on Xubuntu 12

I just had so much trouble configuring RDP on my upgraded server which now boasts of having Ubuntu 12.04, a live update from Trusty. It looks easy as doing:

sudo apt-get install x11vnc xrdp

I googled a bit until I found this guide, written by Seb Maynard:

sudo x11vnc -storepasswd /etc/x11vnc.pass

You need to specify your own password at the prompts above! ;)

 Put this in /etc/init/x11vnc.conf :

start on login-session-start
script
/usr/bin/x11vnc -xkb -auth /var/run/lightdm/root/:0 -noxrecord -noxfixes -noxdamage -rfbauth /etc/x11vnc.pass -forever -bg -rfbport 5900 -o /var/log/x11vnc.log
end script

Reboot!

It should have been easy as the steps described above but I have one problem: I have vino installed and I wanted to use it as well! But vino uses 5900 by default, so I needed to change it to 5901.

Another google search and I found this:

gsettings set org.gnome.Vino alternative-port 5901
gsettings set org.gnome.Vino use-alternative-port true

So I edited my /etc/xrdp/xrdp.ini, assigned vino to 5901 and x11vnc to 5900 and its finally done! But a word of warning: its really not as easy as it seems! :)

By the way, if you want another way to start x11vnc at graphical login, look here! :)

Notes on Installing OpenGeo on Ubuntu 10.04.4 LTS

This would come handy if apt-get complains of overwriting a file from an existing package:
 
 sudo apt-get -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-overwrite" install [package name]

Installing OpenGeo on Ubuntu needs an updated libproj0, otherwise, one cannot create postgis-enabled databases

 sudo apt-get install libproj0




“PSALM should have been more forthright with the people of Mindanao when it explained its alleged losses in operating the government’s power facilities in Mindanao. PSALM’s statement cunningly presented half-truths by stressing only about losses, but not how the Agus Pulangui plants saved billions of government money,” --MinDA Chair Antonino

Some take issue with calling Red Hat the first billion-dollar open source company. As Linux kernel maintainer Greg Kroah-Hartman notes, Google, Facebook, and Amazon were built on open source software, and IBM made billions off of Linux. "There are lots of companies that rely entirely on open source software, and give back in various ways to the communities involved," he said. "Loads of them are above the billion-dollar mark." (http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2012/02/how-red-hat-killed-its-core-productand-became-a-billion-dollar-business.ars/2)

Ubuntu Unleashed: Tweak Ubuntu Boot Processes & Runlevels

Ubuntu Unleashed: Tweak Ubuntu Boot Processes & Runlevels

13.3 Per-Group Descriptive Statistics / MySQL Cookbook

13.3 Per-Group Descriptive Statistics / MySQL Cookbook