Enrile alleges overcharging by Meralco

Philippine Senator Juan Ponce Enrile is filing a class suit claiming overcharging of customers by Meralco

By CNN's Amabelle Layug in Hong Kong

MANILA, Philippines -- The country's largest power distributor, Manila Electric Company (Meralco), has been accused of overcharging consumers.

Senator Juan Ponce Enrile said the company overcharged customers by P914 million ($18 million) in March.

Enrile made the allegation as he announced Wednesday that he will file a class action suit against the Lopez-owned company on behalf of consumers.

Meralco has rejected Enrile's accusations as "way off".

Enrile said Meralco's March billings included a P2.23 per kwh charge amounting to P914 million supposedly paid to First Gas Power, another Lopez-owned power generating company, which is not yet in operation.

First Gas Power 'not generating'

Enrile said First Gas Power could not have supplied power to Meralco because it did not generate a single kilowatt-hour of power.

Enrile alleged this anomaly stemmed from a "dubious deal" between Meralco and First Gas Power.

Enrile further claimed the practice resulted in Meralco's padding of purchased-power adjustment (PPA) charges to consumers by 49 centavos per kwh, or 21 percent of the P2.33 per kwh that Meralco billed its consumers for March.

PPA covers the increases in the cost of power bought by Meralco from the National Power Corp. and other suppliers of power.

Meralco dismissed Enrile's allegation as "way off" and urged the senator to make his calculations first before throwing any accusations.

Enrile was recently released from detention after posting bail. He was arrested on charges of rebellion for leading a throng of supporters to storm the presidential palace of Malacanang and demand the ouster of incumbent leader Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

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