Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube
Home Blog Page 7325

More pork shipments from Visayas, Mindanao

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it forged a partnership with the hog industry to increase the shipments of live hogs and pork products from the Visayas and Mindanao into Luzon in a bid to bring down pork prices in public markets.

In a virtual meeting with hog producers, Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said weekly pork shipments will involve 27,000 to 30,000 animals from Davao, General Santos City, and Cagayan de Oro.

Mr. Dar said the effort to bring in pork from the southern islands will add to the supply in Luzon, which has dwindled due to African Swine Fever.

“This is a problem of logistics — including sourcing, distribution and marketing — which we can address without difficulty. All we ask is the full cooperation of key players in the entire hog industry value chain,” Mr. Dar said.

At the same meeting, San Miguel Corp. committed to increase shipments of frozen pork carcasses to four containers or 48 metric tons per week from Mindanao, while DA regional directors in the Visayas confirmed that live hogs from Cebu, Iloilo, and Leyte will also be sent to Luzon.

Mr. Dar sought the assistance of Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, who agreed to work with shipping companies to increase ship traffic to Luzon from Cagayan de Oro, General Santos City, Davao, and major ports in the Visayas.

“We will elevate our partnerships with hog producers and traders, ship owners and operators, and local government officials in the Visayas and Mindanao to supply Metro Manila and Luzon with hogs and frozen pork, and eventually bring down prices for the benefit of consumers,” Mr. Dar said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Pork SRP raised after shortages

THE Department of Agriculture said it raised the suggested retail prices (SRPs) for various cuts of pork sold in Metro Manila wet markets and supermarkets to account for shortages caused by African Swine Fever (ASF).

In an administrative circular signed Wednesday, Mr. Dar said the new SRP for pork shoulder, known as kasim, is at P260 per kilogram, while the SRP for pork belly, or liempo, was set at P280 per kilogram.

Prior to the adjustment, kasim was at P230 and liempo P250.

Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said in the circular that ASF has raised retail prices, which the department is seeking to mitigate by shipping in more pork from outside Luzon. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

Carbon emissions shifting to households during COVID-19 pandemic

HOUSEHOLDS are taking up the slack on carbon emissions due to work-from-home schemes after companies shut down by the pandemic cut back on their on-sit e operations, according to officials from the power, telecom, and electric vehicle industries.

“Offices, manufacturers and firms are on shut down mode. We’re not using much of our power and electricity. Since people are working from home… this is where the carbon footprint will increase,” Gerhard P. Tan, an engineer who is Globe Telecom, Inc.’s director of technology strategy, said at the BusinessWorld Insights webinar Wednesday.

He said industry and individuals have a collective responsibility to lower the Philippines’ overall carbon footprint.

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) Chief Sustainability Officer Raymond B. Ravelo said coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has decreased the company’s emissions since the beginning of the lockdown.

“People have been working from home. When the community quarantine started, we started deploying fewer people. It’s been naturally easier to cut down our emissions,” he said, adding that the firm had been making a push for renewable energy and vehicle electrification even before the pandemic.

“We were able to reduce (emissions) on a year-on-year basis,” he said, citing data issued in September.

Edmund Araga, the President of the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines, said the global health emergency has impacted the manufacturing of electric vehicles (EVs) as well as procurement, distribution and fleet operations.

He said EVs did their part during the emergency with electric-powered jeepneys and tricycles helped ferry healthcare frontliners between hospitals and their homes.

According to Meralco’s Mr. Ravelo, EVs will help reduce emissions over the long term.

“One thing that the pandemic taught us is that there is greater awareness of respiratory health. In that light, decarbonization is very important. Having zero-emissions alternatives is very important and that’s where EVs are well positioned,” he said.

Dealing with any crisis is expensive, said First Philippine Holdings Corp. Chief Sustainability Officer Agnes C. de Jesus. However, she added that firms needed to “act now on climate change as delayed action will be more costly.”

She added that companies can reduce emissions through short or long-term targets, and by looking at various means to mitigate carbon emissions, including minimizing them in their supply chains. — Angelica Y. Yang

US firm to seek permit to build offshore Batangas LNG terminal ‘soon’

EXCELERATE ENERGY LP said Wednesday its preparations to build an offshore liquified natural gas (LNG) terminal project in Batangas are nearly complete and that it will seek a permit to start construction “soon” from the government.

“We will submit our Permit to Construct, Expand, Rehabilitate and Modify (PCERM) to the DoE (Department of Energy) soon, which is the next step in bringing this nationally-important facility online as early as the (second) quarter of 2022,” Ramon Wangdi, president of Excelerate Energy subsidiary Luzon LNG Terminal, Inc., said in a statement.

Excelerate, a US company which makes floating LNG transfer and storage facilities, has teamed up with Topline Energy & Power Development Corp. to develop the Filipinas LNG Gateway Project, which received its notice to proceed by the DoE in September 2019.

The terminal, which will be built 9.5 kilometers offshore in Batangas Bay, will feature an Excelerate floating storage regasification unit, which converts LNG shipped as a liquid into gas form for use by power plants. It will have a capacity of five million tons of LNG annually, accounting for up to 4,000 megawatts (MW) of power when used by baseload power plants.

Once operational, the terminal will offer open, third-party access to all gas users in Luzon, and allow the industry “unfettered access to the global LNG marketplace,” Mr. Wangdi said.

Under the open-access model, gas users can enter into short-term contracts for quantities that meet their specific requirements. “This method is highly efficient as there is less wasted capacity due to under-utilization,” he said.

Excelerate Energy has operated offshore gas import terminals in 13 countries, including facilities in the Gulf of Mexico and the North Atlantic, Israel, and the Bay of Bengal.

LNG imports are viewed as an alternative to the depleting reserves in the Philippines’ sole natural gas field in Malampaya, northwest of Palawan. The Malampaya field, which accounted for 3,200 MW worth of electricity last year, is expected to be depleted by 2027, according to DoE estimates.

The government has so far signed off on LNG terminal projects proposed by the LT Group in partnership with Blackstone Group’s affiliate Gen X Energy, the First Gen Corp. and Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd. venture, and Energy World Gas Operations Philippines, Inc. Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. is also working to construct a similar project.

Excelerate’s target entry of imported LNG products is earlier than First Gen’s target of the third quarter in 2022. First Gen will be constructing its LNG terminal within the last quarter of this year after recently securing a construction permit from the DoE.

“Under almost any scenario, we see LNG playing an important role in supporting rapidly growing economies such as the Philippines that want to grow its energy supply reliably, competitively, and cleanly,” Mr. Wangdi said.

“In the long run, we believe the terminal’s strategic offshore location will allow for Filipinas LNG to act as an LNG distribution hub for delivery of natural gas to end-users across the Philippines,” he added. — Adam J. Ang

World Bank approves P4-billion loan for Customs modernization

THE WORLD BANK has approved a loan worth $88.28 million (P4.3 billion) for the modernization of the Bureau of Customs (BoC), a project which hopes to automate the agency’s processes and lower trade costs.

In a statement Wednesday, the bank said its board of executive directors approved the loan for the Philippines Customs Modernization Project.

The bank said the program is expected to benefit traders, exporters, importers, port operators, shipping companies and transport providers.

“Improved efficiency at the Bureau of Customs will reduce trade costs and support the Philippines’ competitiveness. Automation will reduce face-to-face interactions and delays, and increase accountability, all of which strengthens efficiency and improves the business environment,” Ndiamé Diop, World Bank’s country director for Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines, was quoted as saying.

The loan will also fund the development of a new customs processing system that is at par with global standards. The planned upgrade will integrate key processes such as trade management and registration, cargo inspection, duty payment, and clearance and release of items across a single, seamless online system.

It said the bank will support the bureau in fast-tracking its reforms that will enhance its trade processes through digitalization of its existing paper-based systems, and improve key roles such as risk management, intelligence, post clearance audit, and other transaction processes that have been prone to corruption.

The BoC said in a separate statement the loan will also support its Administrative Back-Office Enterprise Resource Planning, which will streamline its technology, services, and human resources support functions.

“Relatively poor trade facilitation performance at the country’s borders can partly be attributed to outdated infrastructure and business practices,” the World Bank said.

It said a container in the country takes 120 hours on average to clear customs and other inspections, which was way longer than those recorded in some of its regional peers such as Vietnam, Thailand, or Malaysia.

“The unfavorable business environment for firms in the Philippines reduces the incentive to engage in export, thereby foregoing the opportunity to expand markets and create more jobs in the Philippines,” it said.

The Customs modernization program is valued at P5.45 billion. — Beatrice M. Laforga

NPC to allow data breach victims to apply for cease-and-desist orders

VICTIMS of personal data breaches may request cease-and-desist orders from the National Privacy Commission (NPC) if the breach violates their privacy rights and causes “irreparable injury.”

The NPC, in circular no. 20-02 signed on Oct. 6, said that it may issue such orders in the event of violations or threats to violate the Data Privacy Act.

The order will be issued if the privacy breach harms the public interest or an individual.

The aggrieved party can apply for the issuance of such an order, or NPC’s investigation arm can initiate proceedings. Applicants must submit evidence supporting their claim and put up a bond.

The NPC can issue an order without hearing after conducting an investigation. Hearings may proceed after the respondent submits its own comment.

Non-compliance with the order could result in fines and penalties, and possible contempt proceedings.

The commission has been seeking accountability from private and public organizations, including health institutions, collecting personal data during the pandemic.

The NPC has warned contact tracers and the makers of contact-tracing apps to limit their data collection to necessary information, and avoid collecting signatures. Earlier this month, the commission flagged the “dismal” privacy standards in the health sector, citing breaches caused by human error. — Jenina P. Ibañez

House bill proposes to tax offsite betting on cockfights, other electronic gambling

OFFSITE betting on cockfights, known as electronic sabong (e-sabong), could come in for more attention from the tax authorities after a bill was filed in the House of Representatives proposing a new electronic gambling tax to fund coronavirus containment efforts.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jose Maria Clemente S. Salceda said Wednesday that the government should have a clear policy on offsite betting for cockfights, which currently fall into a regulatory “gray area.”

“The operations are already legal, by virtue of local ordinances, but the electronic aspect of it is a legal gray area. Because of the ambiguity, we are unable to levy national taxes on these activities, or look into their operations. My bill addresses that concern,” Mr. Salceda said in filing House Bill (HB) No. 7919.

HB 7919 proposes amendments to the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997 which clarify the tax treatment of offsite betting.

“The tax shall be 5% of gross revenues derived from offsite betting activities, and shall not be in lieu of taxes required by the local government units, and regulatory fees and charges imposed by government agencies,” Mr. Salceda said.  “This is consistent with the bill’s intention not to overstep the authority of the local government units (LGUs).”

Mr. Salceda said most offsite betting activity represents electronic derivatives of “already-licensed physically-conducted activities.”

“Several LGUs have authorized these activities within their jurisdictions. However, because the regulatory framework for such activities has not been clarified, the national government has been unable to maximize the revenue potential of such activities,” he said.

“The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) does not have clear and explicit legal oversight on the revenue-generating capacity of these activities,” according to the bill. “Many such activities do not fall within the purview of the government gaming agencies, such as the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) or the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).”

Republic Act No. 7160, or the Local Government Code, grants LGUs the authority to “authorize and license the establishment, operation, and maintenance of cockpits, and regulate cockfighting and commercial breeding of gamecocks.”

Mr. Salceda, however, said the code appears not to have anticipated “the limits of these powers in the case of electronic betting on such activities.” — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza

Notice of discrepancy: Is there a difference?

In September, the BIR issued two revenue regulations related to tax assessments. The first one is on the Voluntary Assessment and Payment Program (VAPP), allowing taxpayers to make voluntary payments and be entitled to immunity from or cancellation of an ongoing audit.

The second is what I would like to discuss in this article — Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 22-2020 — on the due process requirement in the issuance of a deficiency tax assessment. It is an amendment to the regulations covering the tax audit process, specifically Section 3 of RR No. 12-1999, which was likewise earlier amended by RR No. 18-2013 and RR No. 7-2018. The major change is on the BIR’s issuance of a Notice of Discrepancy (NoD) instead of a Notice for Informal Conference (NIC).

An NIC is a written notice issued by the BIR informing the taxpayer of the preliminary findings and discrepancies found during an audit. It also contains an invitation to schedule a conference with the revenue officers, where the taxpayer is allowed to explain his side and submit supporting documents to the examiner. RR No. 7-2018 provides that the Informal Conference shall in no case extend beyond 30 days from receipt of the notice.

With the issuance of RR No. 22-2020, the taxpayer must then be informed through an NoD instead of an NIC.  Let’s try to distinguish the two.

Based on the revenue officer’s submitted initial report of investigation, the taxpayer must be informed in writing of the discrepancy or discrepancies in the payment of internal revenue taxes, as a preliminary step to the Discussion of Discrepancy.

Comparable with the NIC, the NoD allows the taxpayer to present and explain his side on the discrepancies found. Based on Annex A of RR 22-2020, the taxpayer has five days from receipt of the NoD to present and explain his side. The NoD shortened the period for the initial discussion/conference since the NIC typically gave the taxpayer around 10 to 15 days to respond. Nonetheless, should the taxpayer need more time to present other documents in response to the NoD, he may submit them after the discussion not later than 30 days after receipt of the NoD.

Similar to the NIC, the taxpayer’s failure to appear on the scheduled date, without prior notice to the BIR, will be construed as a waiver of the taxpayer’s right to a Discussion of Discrepancy. Consequently, the taxpayer is deemed to have no objections to the findings in the NoD. The failure of the taxpayer to reconcile and present valid documentary support against the noted discrepancies will result in a Preliminary Assessment Notice (PAN). Also, in both notices, if the taxpayer remains liable for deficiency taxes after presenting his side, and fails to pay the deficiency taxes or disagrees with the findings, the investigating office is to endorse the case for issuance of a deficiency tax assessment.

Again, there is no significant difference between the NIC and NoD in this aspect.

So, where does the distinction lie?

The difference is in the number of days the BIR office concerned has to endorse the case for the issuance of a deficiency tax assessment. For the NIC, the investigating office (or Revenue District Office) endorses the case to the Assessment Division of the Revenue Regional Office or the Commissioner or his duly authorized representative at the National Office within seven days from the conclusion of the Informal Conference. On the other hand, in the case of the NoD, the investigating office endorses the case to the reviewing office within 10 days from the conclusion of the discussion. Failure on the part of revenue officers to comply with the period renders them liable to penalty. Given the minimal difference in the number of days, it doesn’t seem to be an important distinction either — at least nothing that could spell much difference from a taxpayer’s point of view.

Overall, the NoD runs parallel with the NIC in terms of the timeline and initial process taxpayers undergo during a tax assessment. It seems that the NIC or Notice for Informal Conference was just renamed as Notice of Discrepancy, perhaps to emphasize the discrepancy rather than the conference. Save for the difference in name and minimal difference in the number of days for endorsement of the revenue examiner’s report, the NoD will likely implemented the same way as the NIC.

Although there is no substantial difference between the two notices, the good thing is, taxpayers still retain their procedural right to due process. Their right to be heard, through the explanations and supporting documents that they offer, should protect them against arbitrary and invalid deficiency tax assessment.

RR No. 22-2020 takes effect 15 days following the date of its publication on Sept. 17. Hence, starting Oct. 2, taxpayers under audit should not be surprised if they receive the NoD instead of the NIC. With differences so minor, however, will anyone even notice?

The views or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Isla Lipana & Co. The content is for general information purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for specific advice.

 

Christian D. Grimaldo is a Senior Consultant at the Client Accounting Services group of Isla Lipana & Co., the Philippine member firm of the PwC network.

+63 (2) 8845-2728

christian.d.grimaldo@pwc.com

Future-proofing energy security

The Department of Energy (DoE) says it will no longer give permits for the construction of new coal-fired power plants. And, perhaps signaling preference for more renewable energy projects in the future, energy officials are also now allowing foreign investors to fully own big geothermal plant projects in the country.

Energy officials have noted the need for a “more flexible” power supply mix. The aim is to build “a more sustainable power system that will be resilient in the face of structural changes in demand and will be flexible enough to accommodate the entry of new, cleaner, and indigenous technological innovations,” Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi told a virtual conference on Tuesday.

The ongoing shift away from “traditional” energy sources like coal and oil is perhaps likewise indicated by the recent decision of Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. to shut down its oil refinery in Batangas. Meanwhile, Petron Corp. says it is also considering eventually closing its refinery in Bataan. And when it does, the Philippines will become mainly an importer of gasoline and diesel.

Secretary Cusi points to the goal of “sustainable growth” as the main driver for transitioning from fossil fuel-based energy like coal and oil to “cleaner energy sources.” The ban on coal, energy officials say, will be in effect until there is a significant increase in demand for power, and prevailing supply will be insufficient. In short, the ban is not forever.

The “temporary ban” or the moratorium on new approvals has several consequences, unintended or otherwise. One, it favors those who are already invested in coal and are efficiently and profitably operating coal plants, and have access to cheap coal. The ban poses a barrier or a limitation to entry for those who intend to compete in this field in the future.

Two, it may place on the backburner all planned but still-unpermitted coal projects and forces energy investors to look for alternatives. Those with capital, but not the technology to pursue “cleaner” energy projects, will be prompted to either divest, diversify, or venture with clean-energy investors. This indirectly pushes capital towards renewable projects in the pipeline.

Three, the ban favors those already invested in renewables, even those operating at not-so-efficient or not-so-profitable levels. By putting an end to investments, even temporarily, on coal energy, then existing players can be given temporary relief from the drop in energy demand because of COVID-19. But this also puts them in a position to sell or supply more, and thus achieve optimization or profitability, as demand rises in the future.

Four, the ban, in a way, protects and favors existing players, including coal-fired plants, if it has the twin effect of deterring further competition from coal — even temporarily — and, paving the way for a longer gestation period for new “clean energy” projects to materialize. If power supply will be indirectly capped meantime, existing players can cut losses or better recoup investments as soon as demand rises again.

Note that the ban on endorsing new coal-fired power plants will reportedly not affect those already given prior endorsements. In Luzon alone, there are reportedly 3,436 megawatts (MW) of coal-fired power projects already committed. Then, we have another 135 MW in Visayas, and another 420 MW in Mindanao. The “one we need to sort out,” according to an Energy official, covers about 10,000 MW of “indicative” coal-fired power plant projects across the country.

It is also unclear to me where the pursuit of cleaner energy puts the “nuclear” initiative. And given pronouncements previously that tend to support the consideration of the nuclear option, I am uncertain now whether this is still something that is going to be pursued. In this line, it will be very interesting how the government’s 20-year Philippine Energy Plan will look like.

As for allowing foreigners to fully own large-scale geothermal exploration, development, and utilization projects, or those requiring an initial investment cost of about $50 million or more, this signals a couple of things: that there is not enough capital in the country interested in such projects; or, that there is not enough technical expertise; or, both; or, that there is foreign group interested to come in but only if they can fully own and control the venture.

Frankly, it makes no difference to me if foreigners are allowed 100% ownership of large-scale renewable energy projects. The risks associated with such I deem relatively low for us. After all, it is not as if foreign investors can simply pack up the big power projects and repatriate them lock, stock, and barrel. Neither can they “pilfer” local production and then send them home.

And it is highly unlikely for foreign military agents or saboteurs to invest at least $50 million in a local energy project just to get the chance to “sabotage” our energy security in the future. It will be simpler and cheaper for them to just fund a foreign military team in the future to infiltrate and bomb existing power installations in the Philippines.

It is a different story if foreigners destructively mined our minerals and just sent raw ore abroad; or foreign poachers harvested fish from our seas; or foreign farmers are allowed to own and use our land to grow food mainly for their use. Foreigners producing solar, geothermal, or hydropower or natural gas power in the country cannot “steal” and take home what they produce.

Also, at this point, solar is said to be at its cheapest in terms of installation and cost of production worldwide. This is abundant energy at reasonable cost, and produced in a way that is renewable and sustainable. This situation benefits both people and the environment, as long as we also consider the recycling of waste generated by the replacement of old panels.

The writing is on the wall even for fossil fuels. And I think Shell and Petron know this. Land travel and air travel are currently down, thus also the demand for their fossil fuel. But with newer hybrid technology and electric cars coming out, industries and consumers are also looking for cheaper and more energy-efficient ways to run factories and homes, and to move cargo and people from one point to another. Many may opt to shift away from gasoline and diesel.

Reducing power industry demand particularly for fossil fuel like bunker and coal further insulates us from external factors like supply bottlenecks and geopolitics that impact on the prices of imported fuel. Shifting to renewables and electric alternatives might actually make oil refineries in the country irrelevant, eventually.

I believe the Energy department is on the right track. While government policy calibrations will always have industry winners and industry losers, overall, the winner should be the consumer and the country. But even power and fuel are products that need to be sold at a profit. Lower energy and fuel prices benefit consumers and producers, but this should not be at the expense of those producing them nor the environment. I believe clean energy is a win-win for both.

 

Marvin Tort is a former managing editor of BusinessWorld, and a former chairman of the Philippines Press Council

matort@yahoo.com

The loneliness of the long-distance employee

THE Great Work From Home Experiment of 2020 has gone on for nearly eight months, and preliminary results are coming in. Overall, surveys suggest that most of us like it most of the time, except for one thing: We feel lonely. “Camaraderie” is the No. 1 thing people look forward to about an eventual return to the office. “Loneliness” is often at the top of the list of downsides to remote work.

Feeling lonesome is not only a side effect of working from home. Our social interactions outside work have also been curtailed. Normally, a teleworker can liven up her day with coffee-shop meetings or dinners with friends. Not during a pandemic. Nor are we working remotely entirely by choice right now. Many are banished.

If you’re an extrovert, a manager, someone who loves their job, or someone with particularly wonderful coworkers, you probably feel the weight of loneliness especially heavily at the moment, says Gianpiero Petriglieri, an associate professor at the business school INSEAD and author of a recent Harvard Business Review article, “In Praise of the Office.”

We should remember that this isn’t a universal experience. “There’s a whole bunch of people who felt oppressed, miserable, silenced, invisible at the office,” Petriglieri says. “And if you ask them, I don’t think they say, ‘Oh, I feel so lonely.’” Those of us feeling lonely are more likely to be the lucky ones — the ones who fit into the company culture and get to be our authentic, best selves at work.

Those who hold a modicum of power over other people may be especially afflicted. Managers and leaders get affirmation from having their teams around them; it’s a tangible reminder of their status. Leading remotely thus might not be as rewarding as the real thing. At the same time, managers feel no less pressure to deliver for their own bosses. And as Jane Austen once wrote, “to flatter and follow others without being flattered and followed in turn is but a state of half enjoyment.” Behind the arch language is a human truth: Everyone needs to feel valued. For some, that occurs more easily in the office.

Some of us might also feel lonely for their past selves who used to stride purposely off the train in the morning, dressed in work clothes. Maybe we didn’t always like being that person, but after an absence she is missed.

Time away from colleagues might also give them a rosy glow. It’s easy to forget a coworker’s annoying heavy sighs or insistence on microwaving fish.

With virus cases on the rise, especially in Europe and the US, it seems unlikely that many people will be heading back to the office soon. But there are ways to make the winter bearable. Just look to the example of gig workers, who are officeless by definition. Research that Petriglieri has conducted with Susan Ashford and Amy Wrzesniewski has found that the people who are happiest having an independent career spend the most time building connections: to people, a routine, a sense of purpose, and a workspace.

The thing about the office, Petriglieri says, is that it offers those four connections as a bundle. “And as with any bundle, it wasn’t perfect, right?” he asks. But it was convenient. Creating connections independently takes more effort. A casual chat via video call takes some planning.

Creating a poor facsimile of the office — perhaps by lining up a day of back-to-back Zoom calls — isn’t the way to get through this isolated time. That will only remind us of all that we’re missing. Paradoxically, a better way forward might be to accept that work relationships, as well as our relationship to work itself, are different now.

“What’s the difference between loneliness and solitude?” Petriglieri asks, before answering his own question. “One is a state of deprivation, and the other is a state of fulfillment.” He’s not suggesting we paint a happy face over our mixed feelings about this time. But it is a good reminder that being alone doesn’t have to be lonely.

The pandemic may have erased our ability to run into one another at the coffee machine, but it’s also provided more insight into our coworkers’ personal lives — their piles of laundry, their keyboard-obsessed cats, their kids. That’s a pandemic reality to embrace now, and one day carry with us back to the office.

BLOOMBERG OPINION

Trump energy policies and the US elections

Next week will be the US Presidential elections and people ask if President Donald Trump has encouraged more economic activities and dynamism than his predecessor, the Obama-Biden administration with eight years in power.

There are many metrics to help answer this but for this piece, I will limit the metrics to the overall GDP performance and key energy policies of the Trump administration. The chosen years are 2008, the end of the Bush Jr. administration as baseline; 2012, the end of Obama-Biden term 1; 2016, end of Obama-Biden term 2; and 2019, year three of Trump.

For “country” I chose the two largest economies of North America, Europe, and Asia. Then I added the three largest ASEAN countries in population — Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam — which have a combined population of about 477 million, big, similar to the population of the US plus Russia.

For coal energy consumption, one Exajoule is equivalent to 23.88 million tons oil equivalent (mtoe), or 277.8 terawatt-hours (TWH). Data is from the IMF World Economic Outlook (WEO) database October 2020, and BP Statistical Review of World Energy (SRWE) database June 2020.

In GDP expansion, it appears that Trump has elicited more business dynamism than his predecessor and US economic expansion was much faster than the other five biggest economies of three continents except China. In coal use, the anti-coal policies succeeded in all developed countries in the list but not in China. Indonesia and Vietnam also jacked up their coal use much faster than the Philippines (see Table 1).


Fracking and modern extraction of oil and gas has greatly expanded US production of these two commodities. While US production of oil was fast under Obama-Biden, it was much faster under Trump.

In natural gas production, measured in billion cubic feet (bcf) per day, the production rate under Trump was 3x under the Obama-Biden second term. The US has become the world’s largest producer of oil and gas, though not yet the largest exporter because of its high oil-gas domestic consumption (see Table 2).


Table 2 also shows that the “Trump is Russia puppet” narrative is a hoax from the beginning. Russia’s main exports, nearly 50% of total exports, are oil, gas and coal, not bombs, missiles and jet fighters.

Trump already campaigned since 2015 that if he wins, he would raise the US’ oil, gas and coal production, meaning directly competing with Russia and adversely affecting big Russian businesses including Putin allies. And world prices of these three fossil fuels have generally stabilized at low prices in the past three years, thanks to bigger US supply especially under Trump.

The “net zero” CO2 emission goals of many country leaders recently are more sound bites and rhetorical, not real. All the major oil and gas producers have ramped up their production, or at least maintained the level more than a decade ago, shown in table 2. Meaning global demand for fossil fuels remains high.

So on the question if Trump has encouraged more economic activities and dynamism in the US than his predecessor, the answer is Yes.

Meanwhile, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) has launched its Oplan e-Skwela campaign, in which company laptops which are no longer used for market operations plus employees’ gadgets donations were collected and given to students of the Philippine Science High School in Quezon City.

On the indefinite lockdown which has walloped many businesses and killed many jobs as indicated in huge decline in electricity demand, the Concerned Doctors and Citizens of the Philippines (CDC PH) continues its call that the lockdown, whether MECQ, GCQ, MGCQ, should be lifted. Allow the healthy to freely work and travel while protecting the elderly and immune-compromised, and use proven prophylaxis to frontline personnel and people with early symptoms and avoid hospitalization.

 

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers

minimalgovernment@gmail.com

Hope you liked the music

ONE THING the pandemic and social distancing has forced on everyone is the use of digital communication. On-line experiences now cover all aspects of life, including previous face-to-face activities such as education and medical diagnosis, as well as banking, meetings, and shopping. Now, even children are encouraged to be glued to the screen for their lessons.

Is this surge of online usage now causing a new kind of traffic jam? Are we seeing too much of the buffering sign — please check your internet connection? As in the physical counterparts of these activities, is there now a digital waiting line?

When calling a customer service number (all lines are busy now) or accessing a link, the switchboard quickly instructs the caller to press the number for the service required (press 8 if you just want somebody to talk to). This directs the customer to queue in the proper lane to transact. He often still needs to wait for a real person, or a robot, to help him after establishing his bona fides: what is your mother’s maiden name; what was her favorite color?

We still remember the waiting line in the old normal.

The reception area is a good indicator of customer patronage, just like a full restaurant with a waiting line outside. Still, any person needing to be physically present for a transaction, even in these times, as in medical procedures or a job interview needs to deal with the waiting experience.

What amenities should the digital processing room provide? How can the queue be served better as humans and robots (combined as “hubots”) line up the customers needing to be served?

Here’s what the digital service provider should pay attention to.

Guide the customer. A sizable segment of online users now for virtual meetings, e-commerce, or digital banking are recent converts. A number are elderly “digital tourists” (Hey, Boomer) unfamiliar with the terrain. They can forget passwords. (Which one am I using for this?) Before automatically locking down the bank account on the third false try, then needing to go back to zero and reestablish access, this tourist has to be alerted. It’s good to send a warning on the second wrong try — go back to your notes and check the right password, sir.

Establish one-stop solutions. Being passed from one contact to another can be stressful. (Oh, you had an unauthorized use of your credit card. You pressed the number for lost card, let me pass you on to a Robot #6.) Call centers should be multi-tasking, unless they’re working from home. Wait, I need to feed my baby.

Avoid countdowns. Maybe because of the performance metric of “processing time” per customer (the shorter, the better), service agents try to rush through the procedures. Even ATMs now have a countdown — get the cash in five seconds. This rush to being served within a certain time can rattle the customer. How he longs for the friendly teller wearing a face mask who can fill in the account number! (Is your mother still in ICU, Sir?)

Leave a document of completed transactions. It’s quite comforting to get a confirmation e-mail that the credit card payment done through online banking has been successfully concluded. This helps in tracking bill payments, especially now when utilities, card companies, and even clubs no longer always send bills through messengers or post.

Can there be a more irritating symbol on the gadget than the buffering wheel? It’s the digital command to wait. There is no indication if the system is actually down — “the information session has expired.” Please try again later.

Still, since the mission statement of most companies seem to deal with becoming a digital organization, it is important to remember that the customers cannot always be expected to keep up with every upgrade. Knowing the customer is a mantra not just for proper servicing (the customer is king) but for understanding what works with him.

The digital tourists, or those who get lost in the online maze, sometimes happen to be old and wealthy. It’s good to elicit feedback from them on their waiting experience — hope you liked the music… or did you prefer OPM?

 

Tony Samson is Chairman and CEO, TOUCH xda

ar.samson@yahoo.com

1...7,3247,3257,326...12,673Page 7,325 of 12,673
© 2024 BusinessWorld Publishing.
All rights reserved.
Read our privacy guidelines
Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter Youtube