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Nov 27, 2008: Kuantan PKR parliamentarian
Fuziah Salleh has blasted the government for what she alleged as wasting
RM8 billion of public funds by paying independent power producers (IPPs)
for unnecessary access of backup energy.
“IPPs receiving
payment from the government for producing back-up energy at a 40 percent
rate are making access profits when 20 percent is enough,” she told
reporters outside the Dewan Rakyat today.
 Fauziah
is also unhappy that the government has been lagging in responding
appropriately to the issue.
Earlier in the
Dewan Rakyat, Deputy Energy, Water and Communication Minister Joseph
Salang revealed that Tenaga Nasional Berhad had paid 13 IPPs some RM43
billion for energy including the reserves from 2004 up to May this year.
Salang said he
was not informed of any agreement in the power purchasing agreement (PPA)
that IPPs are instructed by the government to produce 40 percent of
reserve energy.
However, he
admitted that there are excesses pertaining to the percentage of reserve
energy the country has but denied that this was caused by the agreement.
“We hope that
we can reduce this access when there is an increase in demand for the use
of energy and this will happen if we see our economy develop vibrantly and
hope we can reduce the access to 20-25 percent,” Salang told the House.
According to
Fuziah, out of the total amount, RM13 billion were spent on the 40 percent
reserve energy and should the government ask the IPPs to produce only the
20 percent required, RM8 billion could have been saved.
She also
described the response from the ministry as “disappointing”.
“Salang’s
admission that there was access in standby capacity but refused to claim
responsibility by giving excuses like it was not in the PPA is utterly
irresponsible,” she said.
“The people are
currently bearing the burden of high power tariff and the government
should not let the people bear (the access cost of the reserve energy)
through the tariff,” the MP stressed.
Put a leash on
the IPPs
Fuziah also
said it was shocking to hear the deputy minister saying that the
government would “scheme up ways to use the access of energy” instead of
resolving the matter responsibly by reducing the tariff or saving it.
Other Pakatan
Rakyat MPs present at the press conference, R Sivarasa (PKR-Subang) and Dr
D Jeyakumaraj (PSM-Sungai Siput) also slammed the shabby response given by
Salang.
“Salang said
that the government is waiting for ways to use up the access reserve
energy but the people are still paying a lot for electricity due to the
high tariff,” said Sivarasa.
The MPs urged
the government to review the PPAs with the IPPs.
“I urge them to
be more responsible in the matter and stop burdening the people. Enforce
an assessment on these IPPs that have been acting without any
accountability and stop paying for the excesses of energy,” Fauziah added,
on behalf of her colleagues.
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