A MILITANT legislator is seeking an investigation into the alleged awarding of a P320-million coal-supply contract by the National Power Corp. (Napocor) to a local dealer which appeared to be nonexistent.

Documents gathered by party-list Rep. Teodoro Casiño of Bayan Muna revealed that PT Marsiterio Marloan and its local counterpart, Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc., bagged the supply of three lots of 65,000 metric tons each of steaming coal to Pagbilao power plant amounting to a total of P320,639,104.50 (or an average of $124 per metric ton at P49:$1 exchange rate).

Napocor vice president and chairman of the bids and awards committee Juan Carlos Guadarrama sent an invitation to PT Marsiterio Marloan Prakarsat-Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc., February 12, which listed its office at Danarra Hotel Business Center located at 120 Panay Avenue, South Triangle, Quezon City.

The bid opening was held on February 15, 2008, at the Pahiyas Room at Napocor Building on Quezon Avenue in Quezon City and the award was given on February 19. The bidding was covered by BAC-2008-014.

Biddings for Napocor’s coal procurement started early this year to meet the country’s energy requirement.  Napocor has also awarded nine lots of coal amounting to P650,666,016 to the Indonesian company PT Indominco Mandiri on February 11 (BAC-2008-008) for the Sual power plant.

However, a check with the Danarra Hotel revealed that the business center has not been in operation since two months ago and that there was no Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc. holding office there.

A check by Casiño’s office with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also revealed that Transpacific has no business registration. The country’s procurement law requires bidders to submit articles of incorporation which corresponds to SEC registration. If the bidder is a foreign entity, a certification from the foreign embassy is required.

“I am shocked to learn that Napocor recently awarded a P320 million contract to what is apparently a paper company called Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc. It is unconscionable for Napocor to be again involved in such a multimillion-peso scam considering that it has a pending case in the Ombudsman involving more than P650 million in overpriced coal purchases,” said Casiño

“This has the shades of the sale of the Masinloc power plant to a fly-by-night Australian company called YNN Pacific that, like Transpacific, had a fictitious office. That sale was eventually nullified,” Casiño added.

He said a congressional investigation on the matter must be conducted, as this latest incident reveals a pattern of questionable actions by the Napocor management with regards its coal purchases.

“We have to know if there is any irregularity involved and if there is anything in Napocor’s charter or our procurement laws that have to be changed in order to stop this seeming wanton robbery of public funds,” Casiño added.

Napocor took the heat last year when it was accused of an overpriced coal purchase amounting to P655 million.

Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), Anakpawis, the scientist group Agham and People Opposed to Warrantless Electricity Rates (Power) said Napocor president Cyril del Callar committed graft when the state power company purchased allegedly overpriced coal from April to July.

Also named respondents were other Napocor officials including Eduardo Eroy, vice president for logistics; Guadarrama and Urbano Mendiola Jr., head of the management committee secretariat.

Among the charges filed by the groups are violation of the Antigraft and Corrupt Practices Act, Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and the Government Procurement Reform Act.

The complaint stemmed from alleged “emergency purchases” made by Napocor during the months of April, May and July 2007 owing to a reported shortage in the supply of coal for their power plants.

The complainants said the purchases were grossly disadvantageous to the consuming public because Napocor allegedly purchased coal at twice the prevailing market prices. The activist groups said the overpricing amounted to P655 million.

Solon seeks probe into Napocor’s ‘overpriced’ coal purchases

A MILITANT legislator is seeking an investigation into the alleged awarding of a P320-million coal-supply contract by the National Power Corp. (Napocor) to a local dealer which appeared to be nonexistent.

SENATE investigators are poised to pursue next week their stalled inquiry into alleged anomalies attending the $329-million national broadband deal (NBN) with Zhong Xing Telecom Equipment Co. Ltd. (ZTE)

TWO soldiers were killed, while six others were wounded in a series of encounters with communist New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas in the triboundary of Abra, Mountain Province and Ilocos Sur, the military reported on Wednesday.

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Jema’ah Islamiyah (JI) terrorists and Abu Sayyaf bandits have freed the teacher they seized after killing a priest in Tawi-Tawi, a ranking police official said on Wednesday.

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) held on Wednesday a river forum to tackle the problems and solution to the looming water crisis as a result of the continued degradation of rivers and other bodies of water in the Philippines.

SPEAKER Prospero Nograles said on Wednesday the House will vote for the third and final reading the bill establishing the Philippines’ territorial baseline even if it has some defects, which he claimed could be remedied by the bicameral conference committee.

SOME 200 undocumented Filipino workers stranded in Saudi Arabia, and Jordan, including those who stayed under the Al-Khandara bridge in Jeddah, are set to be repatriated early April.