Meralco Rural Electrification Project Date of Report: June 2002 Date of Survey: June 2001
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PHILIPPINES Meralco Rural Electrification Project Date of Report: June 2002 Date of Survey: June 2001 1. Project Profile and Japan’s ODA Loan Location Map of the Project A Electrified Household in Rizal Province 1.1 Background At the time of appraisal, the Philippines’ electric power sector was dominated by two corporations, the public National Power Corporation (NPC) and the private Manila Electric Company (Meralco). Meralco – an implementing agency of this project and the largest distribution company in the country -- covered Metro Manila and the surrounding 5 provinces. The NPC - the biggest electricity entity in the country – generated electricity with its own power plant*1 and purchased additional electricity from IPPs. NPC then sold electricity through its own transmission facilities at wholesale price to Meralco, other distribution companies, Rural Electric Cooperative*2 (REC), and bulk consumers. The electrification ratio in the Meralco’s franchise area was 93.2% in 1989, which meant 2.17 million households out of 2.33 million households were electrified. 61% of total households in the area live on Metro Manila, which shared only 7.2% of the total land area. In the area outside of Metro Manila, the number of electrified households was less than 200 per km2, which is one-tenth of that of Metro Manila. The lower household density in rural area and consequently high construction costs for electrification were impeding investment in rural areas, resulting in a low electrification ratio in the rural areas. Therefore, a comprehensive project that would raise the electrification ratio became necessary since electrification was one factor contributing to and improve living standards in the rural areas. 1.2 Objectives To provide electricity to rural areas within Meralco’s franchise area, wherever access to electricity service is either limited or non-existent, and thereby improve the living standard of the residents and contribute to rural development. 1.3 Project Scope Merarlco Rural Electrification Project (“the Project”) comprised of following 2 components: a) Distribution Facilities Installation of major/minor distribution network equipment in 5 provinces surrounding Metropolitan 1 At the time, NPC possessed 94% of all generating facilities in the country. 2 Rural Electrification Corporative (REC) – is managed by the local self-governing body and is in charge of executing rural electrification except Meralco’s franchise area under supervision of the National Electrification Administration. - 1 - Manila (Quezon, Laguna, Rizal, Cavite, and Bulacan) b) House Wiring Installation of wiring facilities in approximately 100,000 houses in the project area Total project cost was 11,044 million yen equivalent, with 75% of the total project cost (8,283 million yen equivalent) being covered by the Japanese ODA loan. 1.4 Borrower/ Executing Agency/ Implementing Agency The Government of the Republic of the Philippines/ Philippine National Bank / Manila Electric Company (Meralco) *3 1.5 Outline of Loan Agreement Loan Amount 8,283 million yen Loan Disbursed Amount 7,414 million yen Exchange of Notes March 1991 Loan Agreement July 1991 Terms and Conditions Interest Rate 2.7 % p.a. Repayment Period (Grace Period) 30 years (10 years) Procurement General Untied Final Disbursement Date October 1999 2. Results and Evaluation 2.1 Relevance The Project was planned to be implemented in accordance with the Meralco’s Rural Electrification Project (REP). At the time of appraisal, the Philippine Government’s Medium Term National Development Plan (1987-1992) placed great importance on poverty reduction in rural areas. In line with this plan, the Depressed Area Electrification Project (DAEP) in Metro Manila and the Rural Electrification Project (REP) were carried out by Meralco, the RECs and other public utilities (PUs) under the supervision of the National Electrification Administration (NEA). However, the two projects incurred higher expenses per consumer because of the low population density, as well as the remoteness of consumers from the grid. In addition, a higher distribution loss and a low tariff collection ratio were also obstacles to execution of these projects. Thus, although the Government and Meralco recognized the importance of the project as a measure for improving the living environment of the affected population, these projects were at a standstill. Consequently, there was demonstrated need for the Project and it was naturally consistent with Philippines` National Development Plan at that time. At present, and in accordance with the rural electrification program, named the O-Ilaw Program*4, the NEA aims to enhance the quality of life of the population, especially those in the rural areas, by providing adequate and sustainable energy services. The O-Ilaw Program aims to complete the electrification of all barangays (villages) by 2006. It can therefore be said that the Project objective has been and still is relevant to the Development Policy of the Philippines. Table-1: O-Ilaw Program Targets Barangays Connections (1,000) RECs Meralco Other PUs Total In % RECs Meralco Other PUs Total In % 2000 27,737 4,172 1,458 33,367 79.6 5,403 3,382 994 9,748 78.7 2006 36,108 4,352 1,565 41,935 100.0 7,836 4,088 1,511 13,077 93.7 Source: Department of Energy 3 Since Meralco could not satisfy necessary conditions as an executing agency, the Philippine National Bank was mandated as an executing agency for sake of convenience, with consent of the Ministry of Finance of the Philippines and National Electrification Authority (NEA). The Project was practically implemented by Meralco, under the supervision of the NEA. 4 O-Ilaw: “O” stands for operation, and “Ilaw” means light in Tagalog - 2 - 2.2 Efficiency 2.2.1 Project Scope At appraisal, 106,213 households were supposed to be electrified. In reality, the number of electrified households increased by 83,354, reaching 189,567. This increase led to a corresponding increase in procured materials, such as poles, secondary transformers, transmission lines, service drops and electrical meters. These scope modifications contributed effectively to achieving the Project objectives. The scope was modified mainly because Batangas Province was added to the Meralco franchise area in 1991, increasing the number of target households*5. 2.2.2 Implementation Schedule Project implementation started in July 1991, on schedule as estimated at appraisal, but was completed in October 1999, 37 months behind schedule. This delay was attributed mainly to an increase in the scope of the work. The increase in the target number of households led to procedural delays related to the acquisition of rights of way and to dealings with local organizations (community groups) at each barangay. Coordination with local organizations and the acquisition of rights of way for distribution facilities are required prior to the application for Meralco’s electrification works. These pre-application activities were carried out by the applicants through the barangay captain, with the supervision of Meralco’s staff. Other delays, in design, construction and installation, originated from the scope expansion, but were minimized to some extent by entrusting non-core work to local contractors. Nevertheless, it was not possible to contract out support for the above-mentioned pre-application activities, which led to a critical shortage of the Meralco staff who were available to manage these issues. 2.2.3 Project Cost The total project cost increased in line with the scope modifications. The actual project cost of 12,722 million yen equivalent was 15.2% higher than the 11,044 million yen equivalent of the appraisal estimate. When taking the 64% increase in the number of beneficiaries into account, it can be said that project objective was achieved efficiently in economic terms. The ODA loan portion disbursed was 7,414 million yen equivalent, which covered 58.3% of the total project cost. The actual disbursement was 869 million yen lower than the approved amount of 8,283 million yen. Although JBIC consented to an extension of loan validity for 2 years in order to adjust for the delay in progress, 10.5% of the approved amount was not utilized within the loan validity period. In the end, balance cost was disbursed from Meralco’s own funds. 2.3 Effectiveness 2.3.1 Contribution to a Higher Electrification Ratio Under the Project, 189,567 households in six provinces were successfully electrified. Although the target area was difficult to energize owing to the low density of households and the distance of housing units from Meralco’s grid system, the beneficiary households accounted for 11.25% of the total number of electrified households in the target provinces. In the case of Quezon Province, the electrification ratio in 1991 was 61.0%, which was the lowest ratio among the 6 provinces. Even with the lowest density among the target provinces, the beneficiary households made up as much as 32.7% of the total electrified households in the province. 5 In addition, there was an increase in the ability to purchase local currency accrued from the revaluation of Japanese Yen vis-à-vis US dollar and the depreciation of Philippine peso - 3 - Table-2: Number of Electrified Households and Project’s Contribution (Unit: 1,000 households) Project’s Contribution 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000*A Outcome*B Ratio (B/A) Metro Manila 1,192.2 1,481.9 1,715.3 1,983.2 2,206.5 0.00 0.00% Rizal 112.8 169.9 209.1 240.1 312.6 48.97 15.67% Bulacan 197.1 271.6 319.8 368.5 415.3 38.37 9.24% Laguna 162.1 218.3 265.7 309.2 351.0 19.19 5.47% Quezon 80.4 83.0 105.6 127.4 150.8 49.33 32.71% Cavite 146.1 207.1 271.9 333.7 385.9 27.35 7.09% Batangas 8.6 10.0 53.9 63.6 70.0 6.36 9.08% Total (Inc.