PAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur – Two groups have strongly opposed the proposed sale of six Agus-Pulangi hydro-power plants in Lanao to the private sector, saying the move will further affect the prices of electricity.

The Freedom from Debt Coalition(FDC)-Western Mindanao, and the Consumers Alliance of Pagadian City have asked the City Council here to adopt a resolution exempting from privatization the National Power Corporation’s (NPC’s) generation assets in Mindanao.

The two groups claimed that when the hydro-power plant in Mindanao will be privatized, chances are the price of electricity will increase and will bring more burden to the poor people of the region and this city.

“For the past ten years since the passage of EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001), we have witnessed a series of rate increases as a consequence of privatization,” the two group said in their letter to the City Council here.

Diosdado Marquez, FDC chairperson, explained that there are six hydro-plants along the Agus River, which gets its water from Lake Lanao in Marawi City, emptying it into Iligan Bay, some 36 kilometers away, generating a total of 727 megawatts.

While Pulangi’s (Bukidnon) lone plant generates 255 megawatts.

Combining the hydro-plants in the two river systems, they supply 70 percent of Mindanao’s power needs.