Beneco streetlight deal with Baguio fizzles out

By Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – The city government will fast-track the bidding of its streetlight management venture using the Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology as hopes dimmed for its deal with the Benguet Electric Cooperative Inc.

           

Mayor Mauricio Domogan on Wednesday said his office has just received the inventory of the city’s streetlights required to firm up the terms of reference for the venture and with the document in, the city can prepare for the publication of the bid invitation.

           

The mayor rued Beneco’s decision to scrap its offer to manage the city’s streetlights but said it cannot be helped as the two parties failed to agree on the terms of the deal after many years of negotiation.

           

Beneco in 2009 offered to take over the operation of the city’s unmetered streetlights from the city engineer’s office and even conducted an experimental management run for nine months to prove the advantages of their set-up.

           

The experiment proved the advantages of Beneco’s setup  with Councilor Joel Alangsab also attesting that 95 percent of the barangay captains expressed preference for the power firm’s management as it was more efficient and effective.

           

The city council and the local finance committee however then balked at its permanent implementation due to the added cost it will entail due to the adjustment of the billing system from the original ten to 12 burning hours which city officials then saw as prohibitive for the city.

           

 But the mayor reconsidered the offer but sought the inclusion of the metered lights in the set-up.

           

Beneco, according to the mayor, made a new offer but added conditions that are not acceptable to the city government.

           

 “With this development, the city has no choice now but to fast-track the LED technology deal,” the mayor said.

           

He said four companies have so far served interest on the venture but the choice will lie on which will have the best offer.

As per the approved TOR, the deal will involve the replacement of all streetlights, park lights, including lights in overpasses, flyovers and City Government owned buildings and facilities with LED bulbs and repair and the maintenance on a private-public partnership and a cost-saving share scheme.

           

The deal aims to enable the city government to cut on electric cost which presently runs to more or less P38 million a year using energy saving bulbs having a longer life span and environmentally friendly that do not bring damage to people’s health.