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Power rates decline in June; no adjustments in Q3 water billing

Households in Metro Manila will see lower electricity bills in June. — PHILSTAR/MICHAEL VARCAS

ELECTRICITY RATES in Metro Manila slightly declined this month, with typical households likely to see a P4 cut in their bills, Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced on Monday.

At the same time, there will be no tariff adjustments on water bills in the third quarter, according to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System Regulatory Office (MWSS).

In a statement, the Philippines’ biggest power distributor said overall rates for this month fell by P0.0216 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to P8.7252/kWh from May’s P8.7468/kWh.

Meralco said the rates decline was still due to its relaxed power contracts as electricity demand remained low in areas under strict lockdown and less stringent quarantine.

Households consuming 200k Wh, 300k Wh, 400 kWh, and 500 kWh could expect bill reduction by P4, P6, P9, and P11, respectively.

The listed utility’s generation charge dropped for the third straight month to P4.3413/kWh this month from last month’s P4.3848/kWh after it invoked another force majeure claim in its power supply agreements during the lockdown.

A force majeure event is an uncontrollable event that makes it impossible for power plant operators to fulfill their obligations.

“This June, the force majeure claim totaled P614 million, equivalent to P0.2208/kWh, representing reduction in fixed costs from its baseload supply contracts recently approved by the Energy Regulatory Board (ERC),” Meralco said.

Since April, overall savings from the force majeure claim reached P1.6 billion.

Without it, generation charge and total rate would have increased by P0.18 and P0.24, respectively, from last month’s rate.

Charges from supply contracts, which make up 50.4% of Meralco’s total supply, slipped by P0.0613/kWh, while the cost of power from independent power producers, which supplies the utility with 47.1% of its requirements, also reduced by P0.2334/kWh due to higher average plant dispatch.

Meanwhile, dues from Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), which fulfills 2.5% of the distributor’s supply needs, went up by P0.3132/kWh because of tighter supply conditions in the Luzon grid upon the incidents of plant outages and slight demand pick up.

Further, other pass-through charges also rose to P0.0219/kWh as the collection of the P0.0495/kWh feed-in-tariff allowance (FiT-All) charge resumed.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) suspended the collection of FiT-All in the April and May billing months to aid consumers affected by the lockdown measures.

Also, the regulator suspended the collection of Universal Charge-Environmental Charge of P0.0025/kWh this month as per its latest advisory.

Despite a monthly rate decrease, Meralco earlier advised some 2.8 million customers whose meters are yet to be read that their June bills will be higher as it will show their total actual consumption during the lockdown period.

The utility suspended meter readings during the quarantine period. As of May, 2.8 million or around 40% of its customers are not yet billed for their actual consumption since March.

WATER RATES UNCHANGED
In a statement on Monday, MWSS Chief Regulator Patrick Lester N. Ty said the board of trustees gave the go signal to retain the prevailing second-quarter foreign currency differential adjustment (FCDA), after evaluating the proposals of the two water concessionaires.

Maynilad Water Services, Inc., which is in charge of the west zone, will continue to apply an FCDA of -0.21% or P0.08 per cubic meter (cu.m.) of its average basic charge of P36.24 per cu.m.

East zone water provider Manila Water Co., Inc. will continue to implement an FCDA of 1.69% or P0.48 per cu.m. of its average basic charge of P28.52 per cu.m.

On March 13, the MWSS board of trustees approved the FCDA for the two water concessionaires.

The FCDA is a tariff mechanism which allows water concessionaires to regain losses or return gains caused by the movement of peso against other foreign currencies. The water providers pay foreign currency-denominated concession fees to MWSS, as well as loans that are used to fund projects to expand and improve water and sewerage services.

The announcement for zero rate adjustment came after the MWSS recently announced that water allocation for Metro Manila households will remain at 48 cubic meters per second until the end of the month.

In a statement on June 2, MWSS Administrator Emmanuel B. Salamat said the sustained water allocation is to address current high water system demands such as for sanitary measures like hand washing to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Adam J. Ang and Revin Mikhael D. Ochave

AC Energy to build wind farms in Vietnam

AYALA-LED AC Energy, Inc. is building two wind energy projects in Vietnam with Hong Kong-based UPC Renewables Group.

In a statement on Monday, the Ayala energy platform said the joint venture started the construction of the wind projects with a total capacity of 60 megawatts (MW) along the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam.

“We have strongly pushed for the adoption of new technologies and best practices to grow our assets in renewables,” Patrice R. Clause, the chief operating officer of AC Energy’s international segment, said.

The two firms secured the wind turbines with a height of 162 meters each, touted as the tallest in the country, from Danish industrial manufacturer Vestas. The wind projects — referred to as Lac Hoa and Hoa Dong — will be built in Vietnam’s Soc Trang Province.

“This project features the tallest towers in Vietnam and showcases Vestas’ ability to optimize the value proposition for our client and develop site-specific solutions for all wind sites,” Clive Turton, president of Vestas Asia Pacific Wind Technology Pte Ltd., was quoted as saying in the statement.

The Singapore-based energy solutions provider will provide an active output management service agreement for up to 20 years.

AC Energy through its wholly owned subsidiary AC Energy Vietnam Investments 2 Pte. Ltd. holds half of the voting stake in both projects.

“The synergies between UPC Renewables and AC Energy continue to allow us to advance innovative and challenging renewable energy projects in the Asia-Pacific region and we look forward to working with AC Energy again to advance wind energy in Vietnam,” UPC Renewables Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Brian Caffyn said.

The projects are a first for UPC Renewables in Vietnam. The partnership between the two companies started in 2013 when they put up the 81-MW wind farm under North Luzon Renewable Energy Corp. in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte.

Meanwhile, AC Energy began the second phase of the Mui Ne wind farm project with The Blue Circle Pte. Ltd. in March. The $80-million wind farm is located on the southeastern coast of the country.

The Ayala company aims to reach a renewable energy capacity of over 5 gigawatts (GW) in the next five years. As of 2019, it posted an attributable capacity of more than 1.8 GW from both operational and under-construction projects in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam. — Adam J. Ang

‘Generic’ work guidelines seen risky for employees

By Jenina P. Ibañez, Reporter

EMPLOYEES’ return to work can prove risky if workplace safety guidelines drafted to protect them from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are not refined for specific industries, a health care professional said.

Dr. Carolina L. Tapia, head of research of preventive and community medicine at St. Luke’s College of Medicine, said in an online interview on Friday that the guidelines released by the Trade and Labor departments are “generic.”

“The risks of both acquiring and transmitting disease are different from business to business, industry to industry,” she said.

She said that the current guidelines can be built on for industry-specific rules, as sectors like healthcare and manufacturing can be at risk if left without specific health safety requirements.

More workers are returning to their regular workplaces after the lockdown was relaxed, with some areas already allowing at least 50% capacity for all industries. The guidelines released by the government in April include face mask and sanitation requirements, as well as health assessments, alternative work “rotation” work arrangements, and workplace layouts that allow for physical distancing.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez in a mobile message on Monday said that the guidelines are the minimum measures, adding that the department has issued guidelines for barbershops, salons, and dine-in restaurants.

“What we issued are the basic guidelines, at the minimum, and each industry sector or company are encouraged to apply even more stricter measures where possible and reasonable, particular to their industry.”

Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said in a mobile message that he encourages companies to adopt stricter measures.

Ms. Tapia said businesses should be required — not just encouraged — to develop a return to work plan, including assessments and measures to reduce health risks. The Labor department, she added, should release a risk assessment checklist for COVID-19.

In terms of personal protective equipment, Ms. Tapia said that bunny suits, given the global scarcity, should be reserved for healthcare settings.

“Other countries say, unless you are in a clinical setting, please do not make employees use bunny suits kasi (because) there is a worldwide scarcity,” she said.

“Kasi wala tayong talagang guidelines. Sinabi lang mag-PPE… dapat business-directed guidelines.”

(Because we don’t exactly have guidelines. What was said was to use PPE. There must be business-directed guidelines.)

She said that everyone should use face masks, especially workers that use public transport.

“Kung 100% compliant lang tayo sa masks, sa physical distancing, sa hand hygiene, we won’t even need dami-daming test kits.”

(If we’re 100% compliant on masks, physical distancing, hand hygiene, we won’t even need many test kits.)

The World Health Organization had recently changed its advice on face masks, saying that they should always be worn in public.

At the level of individual responsibility, Ms. Tapia said that workers should plan their trips to avoid too much physical contact. But she said the government should have used the lockdown to develop plans to allow for bike lanes and widened sidewalks.

“The lockdown should have afforded our government — ang lockdown is to buy time for us to do the things we need to do. Dapat ginamit ‘yung lockdown (The lockdown should have been used) to repair public transport system.”

She also emphasized the need to improve contact tracing, noting that rapid tests used by companies have high false positive and false negative rates.

The private sector has been purchasing rapid tests for their employees, with Project ARK already acquiring more than 1.2 million of these.

Eruption, pandemic pull down Century Properties income

EARNINGS of Century Properties Group, Inc. (CPG) dropped to P290 million in the first quarter as business segments were affected by the Taal eruption and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The listed property developer said in a statement Monday its consolidated revenues in the three-month period stood at P2.8 billion, flat from the P2.77 billion it reported last year.

Its bottomline, however, is down from P367.8 million in the first quarter of 2019.

“The lower net income in the first quarter of 2020 was not totally unexpected considering the three major shocks during the period: the Taal eruption in January, the coronavirus pandemic declaration in February, and the enhanced community quarantine declared in March, coupled with the company’s beefing up its cash war chest,” CPG Chief Finance Officer Ponciano S. Carreon, Jr. said in the statement.

The bulk of the company’s net income came from its affordable housing and leasing business, which contributed a combined P173 million to make up 60% of the pie. This is an increase from the P55 million it recorded last year when it made up 14% of the total net income.

Urban vertical projects added P111 million to account for 38% of net income, lower from the P324 million in 2019 when it comprised 84% of the total. The remaining 2% is from its property management business.

CPG had said before that its medium term plan is to focus on the expansion of its horizontal affordable housing and leasing segments to balance the revenue mix with its vertical developments business.

“We managed to sustain the level of our revenues with a more impressive mix with the affordable housing business and leasing portfolio now contributing a combined revenue of P817 million or 29% of the pie compared with just P200 million or 13% of revenues for the same period last year,” Mr. Carreon said in yesterday’s statement.

“The strong 2019 performance and (first quarter) balance sheet serve as strong foundations for the group to adopt needed structural and operational adjustments and business flexibility amidst the current economic disruptions,” he added.

CPG’s total assets stood at P54.6 billion at the end of the first quarter, higher by P1.2 billion from in end-2019. Its interest bearing liabilities fell by P1.4 billion.

“We are…taking advantage of the opportunity to be ready for another take-off. We expect our high-margin affordable housing and leasing revenues to further grow and boost our bottom-line margins,” Mr. Carreon said.

Shares in CPG at the stock exchange closed Monday’s session down 1.23% to four centavos each. — Denise A. Valdez

Udenna reports P3.4-billion net profit

UDENNA Corp. posted a net profit of P3.39 billion in 2019 driven by the robust performance of its property development business.

In a statement Monday, the holding company of businessman Dennis A. Uy said it reached record high revenues of P110.67 billion last year, higher by 17% from the previous year.

It attributed the increase to its subsidiary Udenna Land, Inc., which it said posted record net profits for the year. The amount was not disclosed in the statement.

Udenna Land sources its revenues from land sales, leasing activities and port revenues. It operates Clark Gobal City in Pampanga, Udenna Tower in Taguig City and Calaca Industrial Seaport in Batangas.

“We are quite happy with the results but the work for creating shareholder value never ends; we continue to lay down the groundwork for Udenna’s future growth and profitability,” said Mr. Uy, the chairman and chief executive officer of Udenna.

He noted, however, that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is affecting Udenna’s business segments, which include oil, gas and retail, shipping and logistics, education, food, gaming and tourism, property development and management, and infrastructure development.

“The on-going COVID-19 situation remains serious and we have been adjusting to it. But just the same we are already looking beyond COVID-19 as we explore new ways of running our businesses, engaging our customers as well as looking at new opportunities and forging strategic partnerships and investments,” Mr. Uy said.

Udenna is keeping hope that its financial position will keep it afloat through the pandemic, with cash levels up 31% to P13.51 billion in end 2019 and its total debt being long term in nature. It also has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.71x in end 2019 from 3.09x in 2018.

Aside from Udenna Land, other companies under Udenna are listed Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Inc.; listed Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp.; Enderun Colleges; Conti’s Bakeshop & Restaurant; Wenhpil Corp.; Eight-8-Ate Holdings, Inc.; PH Resorts Group Holdings, Inc.; and Udenna Infrastructure Corp. — Denise A. Valdez

SEC warns against Ethmarket investment

By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter

THE SECURITIES and Exchange Commission (SEC) is warning the public against engaging with Ethmarket Llc/Ethmarket Llc Ph (Ethmarket), which it said is offering investment contracts without a license.

In an advisory on its website, the corporate regulator said the group is operating through social media and uses a pseudonym “Prince Toh Reez” in talking with clients.

After receiving reports about its scheme, the SEC investigated Ethmarket and found it is not registered with the commission and it does not have a secondary license to solicit or take investments from the public.

“[T]he public is hereby advised to stop investing in the investment scheme being offered by (Ethmarket) and its representatives,” it said.

The SEC likened Ethmarket’s scheme to a Ponzi scheme, which it described as offering investment options that promise ridiculous rates of return with little or no risks.

Ethmarket supposedly entices the public to invest P399 to P399,000 in exchange for a 20% return daily or 100% return in 10 days. It also offers bonuses through referrals.

The SEC said this is equivalent to selling securities in the form of investment contracts. To be legal, an operator should obtain a secondary license and register the securities with the commission. This is the regulation set by the Securities Regulation Code.

For violation of the code, the SEC said salesmen, brokers, dealers and agents of Ethmarket may be penalized with up to a P5 million fine, up to 21 years of imprisonment, or both.

The SEC added Ethmarket is not in the central bank’s list of registered banks, exchanges or companies engaged in digital assets.

The regulator said the name of people behind the group will be reported to the Bureau of Internal Revenue for appropriate penalties.

“[T]hose who invite or recruit others to join or invest in such venture or offer investment contracts or securities to the public may incur criminally liability, or otherwise be sanctioned or penalized accordingly…,” the SEC said.

ABS-CBN’s Lopez is 100% Filipino — SEC

ABS-CBN Corp.’s Chairman Emeritus Eugenio Gabriel L. Lopez III is “100% Filipino” despite being a dual citizen on account of being born in the United States, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

“Our interpretation of the dual citizenship law has been similar to that of the Department of Justice (DoJ). So the interpretation po of RA (Republic Act) 9225 is that a dual citizen is a 100% Filipino. ‘Yan po ‘yung current interpretation namin so we don’t look anymore at this point at the foreign citizenship of the shareholder, officer, or director,” SEC Commissioner Ephyro Luis B. Amatong said on Monday during the joint hearing of the House committees on legislative franchises and good government and public accountability.

RA 9225 or the Citizenship Retention and Re-acquisition Act provides that natural born citizens of the Philippines who become citizens of a foreign country will retain their Philippine citizenship upon taking an oath of allegiance to the Republic.

Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman said that the Constitution does not distinguish between a Filipino of single citizenship and a Filipino of dual citizenship.

“The Constitution does not distinguish between a Filipino of single citizenship and a Filipino of dual citizenship. It is axiomatic that if the law or the Constitution does not distinguish, no distinction is allowed. Consequently, a Filipino with dual citizenship, like Mr. Gabby Lopez, is indubitably qualified to own and manage a mass media corporation, like ABS-CBN,” he said.

Asked by SAGIP Party-List Rep. Rodante D. Marcoleta if Mr. Lopez has allegiance to the American government, the ABS-CBN official replied: “Wala po (None).”

Mr. Lopez said in the joint House hearing on June 3 that he was willing to give up his American citizenship if it “came down to conflict of interest” regarding his management of the network.

The two panels were tackling Mr. Lopez’s citizenship to aid their decision whether to give a new franchise to ABS-CBN. The 1987 Constitution states that media companies should be 100% Filipino-owned. — Genshen L. Espedido

Ben&Ben makes a lockdown song

A SAD story of loss posted on one of Ben&Ben’s music videos on YouTube inspired the indie folk-pop band to create a new single while under quarantine.

Titled “Lifetime,” the song — released on June 4 — was recorded by the band separately because of lockdown restrictions.

“It was also our first time to record a song separately,” Miguel Benjamin Guico, one of the band’s vocalists, said in a digital press conference on June 1.

Ben&Ben is known for its mellow, nostalgic sound, with songs like “Maybe the Night,” “Kathang Isip,” and several others. The band is composed of brothers Paolo and Miguel Guico on acoustic guitars and vocals, Poch Barretto on electric guitar, Jam Villanueva on drums, Agnes Reoma on bass, Patricia Lasaten on keyboards, Toni Muñoz and Andrew de Pano on percussions, and Keifer Cabugao on violin.

The song started out as a story posted by a fan on the music video of Ben&Ben’s song “Pagtingin” (2019). The post told the tale of a woman who was in love for years with her best friend but she was scared to tell him of her feelings because she didn’t want to lose his friendship. After a few years, she attended his wedding and there he told her that he had loved her for years before he met his bride, but had been too scared to tell her, fearing this would end their friendship. She then mused that if one of them had told the other what they felt, a lifetime together would have been waiting for them.

“Was there a lifetime waiting for us, in a world where I was yours,” the song’s chorus goes.

It is the last line of the story.

Paolo Benjamin, Miguel Guico’s brother and the band’s other vocalist, was humming a tune one day and they realized that they had their song.

As of this writing, the song’s lyric video has amassed more than 4 million views.

RECORDING WHILE UNDER QUARANTINE
What was it like, recording a song while under quarantine?

Miguel Guico said that they had to arrange the instruments and everything else online and used an app to upload and download the song’s segments. They had to record the whole song online and separately.

“Everything was do-it-yourself. How to set up the microphones and stuff,” he explained.

“I think one of the bigger challenges was finding the right structure, the right methods to do it… it was a blessing for us that we were all doing some kind of music work… so a lot of us already had equipment for recording the basic stuff. I think the hardest part was finding a way to exchange ideas and how to comment on each other’s arrangements. Once we found the right platform [where] we could do that, everything became so much easier and a lot more intuitive,” Andrew de Pano, one of the band’s percussionists, said during the press conference.

And since they were able to record a song remotely, Miguel Guico said that he hopes that this success will lead them to the release of an album.

“When [the lockdowns started] we were really filled with fear and uncertainty. But then I guess what came out of that process was the decision to really embrace this new dynamic and [this] inspired us enough to start this new season for us, and hopefully it culminates with the release of an album,” he said.

If they manage to record an album online successfully, it will be the band’s second after Limasawa Street in 2019. But he said that even before the pandemic hit, producing a second album was already on the table.

“We’re going to try to do things differently… [and] it will eventually lead back to using the music for the ones who supported us ever since. Even if a lot of things changed because we can’t play live with a live audience, we still want to be there for the ones who listen to us,” he said. — Zsarlene B. Chua

San Miguel reopens SLEx Alabang southbound entry

SAN MIGUEL Corp. (SMC) said it reopened last Sunday the Skyway Alabang Toll Plaza southbound entry, less than two weeks after it was closed to motorists due to the ongoing construction of the P10-billion Skyway Extension Project.

“Less than two weeks after it was closed on May 28, the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) Alabang southbound entry reopened on June 7—eight days ahead of schedule,” SMC said in a statement e-mailed to reporters on Monday.

SMC decided to close the toll plaza entry to allow SLEx contractors to carry out bored piling works for the construction of the Skyway Extension Project.

SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang was quoted as saying: “We want to assure the motoring public and the government that the Skyway Extension Project will be finished at the soonest possible time. This is to demonstrate our commitment to continue to improve our facilities and services — no matter what the situation or circumstance is.”

SMC resumed the construction of the Skyway extension on May 15.

Public and private construction projects had been allowed to resume under the more relaxed community quarantine but workers must be housed and fed onsite and observe physical distancing rules, among other requirements for construction work during the pandemic.

SMC said on May 27 that the completion of the project, which was halted by two months due to the government-imposed enhanced community quarantine, might be slightly delayed.

“The project’s original target completion date was December 2020, but the two-month delay is likely to push this back a little,” the company said in a statement.

The project aims to extend the Skyway from Susana Heights in SLEx to Sucat and back and provide direct access to the elevated section of the Skyway. Construction of the four-kilometer elevated viaduct started in June last year.

Once completed, the project’s three new northbound lanes will be able to accommodate an additional 4,500 vehicles per hour. The two additional southbound lanes will be able accommodate an additional 3,000 vehicles per hour. — Arjay L. Balinbin

California says film and TV production can resume as early as June 12

LOS ANGELES — Film and TV cameras can start rolling in California as soon as June 12, state officials said on Friday as they approved new guidelines to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus on sets.

This as New Zealand’s film industry has started up, with Hollywood director James Cameron and his crew ready to film the sequel of Avatar.

In California, producers will need approval from local health officials to restart filming, according to a statement from the California Department of Health.

Filming around the world was halted in mid-March to help curb the coronavirus pandemic.

A task force of Hollywood studios and labor unions earlier this week proposed extensive coronavirus testing, daily symptom checks, and other safeguards to allow actors and crew members to return to work.

The guidelines were developed by representatives from Walt Disney Co., Netflix, Inc., AT&T, Inc.’s Warner Bros., and Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal, plus unions including SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, and the Directors Guild of America.

To return to work, productions must follow the task force guidelines and also receive clearance from county health officials, the state health department said.

County authorities should consider local coronavirus infection rates, preparedness for a surge in cases, testing capability and other data before granting approval, the department added.

FILMMAKERS BACK TO WORK IN NEW ZEALAND
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s capital Wellington has had an extra buzz of excitement over the past week since Hollywood director James Cameron and his crew flew in to film the much-anticipated sequel of the epic science-fiction film Avatar.

The film is among a handful of productions kicking off in New Zealand as it begins to open up after containing the novel coronavirus, and looks to its film industry to give its battered economy a boost.

New Zealand’s borders remain closed to foreigners but the government gave special permission for the 55 crew members working on the Avatar sequel to jet in on a chartered plane.

New Zealand’s mountains, meadows and forests, made famous by The Lord of the Rings trilogy, have drawn several major film productions over recent years.

About 47 productions were underway when Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern imposed a tough lockdown on March 26 to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

It was a great success and the virus has been almost eliminated in New Zealand, which could be among the first countries in the world to return to normal this week, apart from the closed border.

Avatar producer Jon Landau posted a picture of himself and director Cameron after landing last week and said they would self-isolate for 14 days in line with government rules.

With people around the world cooped up at home, pressure is on filmmakers and other content creators to make new material and get it out.

But what’s holding them back is the lack of safe places to work, industry experts say. Now New Zealand is an option. — Reuters

Bloomberry, AC Health back Makati testing lab

RAZON-LED Bloomberry Cultural Foundation, Inc. (BCFI) has teamed up with Ayala Healthcare Holdings, Inc. (AC Health) to support a Makati-based testing center to increase the country’s testing capacity.

In a statement Monday, BCFI said it had partnered with AC Health in donating testing machines to the Tropical Disease Foundations which could conduct 200 confirmatory coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) tests daily.

“We are happy to partner with AC Health and (Tropical Disease Foundation) and in our own way contribute to the Department of Health’s and the Inter-agency Task Force’s Project T3 (Test, Trace, Treat), which has proven effective in curbing the pandemic,” BCFI President Donato C. Almeda said in the statement.

BCFI noted Tropical Disease Foundation is an accredited testing laboratory by the Department of Health and Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, making it an ally in the country’s fight against COVID-19.

The Health department has been targeting to conduct 30,000 tests daily by the end of May by boosting the number of testing facilities. However, it said last week that the number of actual tests conducted was at 10,000 every day.

Total COVID-19 cases in the Philippines reached 21,895 as of June 7, where 555 are newly reported. Of this total, 16,362 are active cases, 4,530 are recoveries, and 1,003 are dead.

Aside from its partnership with AC Health and Tropical Disease Foundation, BCFI has earlier supported the government through the retrofitting of a unit at the Philippine General Hospital to be a COVID-19 designated treatment facility.

It also continues to provide medical supplies and personal protective equipment to hospitals in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

Bloomberry Resorts Corp., the listed firm behind BCFI, posted a 38% drop in net income to P1.4 billion in the first quarter due to the suspension of its gaming operations.

Shares in Bloomberry at the stock exchange gained 44 centavos or 6.19% to close at P7.55 each on Monday. — Denise A. Valdez

Davao City restaurants struggle amid pandemic

SAGING Repablik (SagRep), a restaurant that has become one of Davao City’s iconic dining places with its hip café-style decor and menu highlighting bananas, would not be celebrating its 6th anniversary this month. Instead, it is closing its doors.

Owner Renato “Gatchi” Gatchalian, also president of the Davao Tourism Association, said he will not be reopening the restaurant even when quarantine restrictions are lifted and dine-in services (subject to health safety protocols) are again allowed.

“I will not reopen because SagRep is an experiential brand. You go here to seek, feel and smell the entire brand with the company of other people. With the restrictions, it prevents the brand to do so,” he said in an online interview.

Other restaurants in the city, including those that redirected operations to delivery and takeout services, are mostly struggling.

“Income is not enough,” Benjamin A. Lizada, president of the Restaurant Owners Association of Davao City, Inc. (RestoDC), said in a phone interview.

There are more than 1,500 restaurants in Davao City, employing about 30,000 workers, based on the group’s data. Many of these are owned by local entrepreneurs with a single shop or a small network of branches.

Mr. Lizada said commercial space rent is the biggest cost for majority of these establishments.

He said they are currently negotiating with lessors on possible adjustments in rental fee, and have appealed to Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III to allow them to settle their 2019 income taxes on a six-month installment from June to December 2020.

“We will discuss with the lessors on how much we will pay for the rent for the next three months…After that, we will evaluate. We also don’t want the lessors to lose. We just want them to understand that people are still scared to go out and eat in the restaurants,” Mr. Lizada said.

“We are willing to pay (the taxes). We are trying to find a way. Just give us time until people are confident enough to eat in the restaurants,” he added.

RestoDC members are also grappling with the mushrooming unregistered food service providers, mostly using social media as marketing platform, who have taken the opportunity presented by the lockdown.

Mr. Lizada said they cannot compete with the prices of these “unregistered and unregulated home-based food providers that have no employees, no rental fee, and no tax” to pay.

He said the group is looking at collaborations to stay afloat and keeping optimistic that they will reach a workable deal with lessors “until a level of normalcy is reached.”

Mr. Gatchalian — a seasoned entrepreneur who founded but has since sold the BluGre Café, another iconic Davao brand — said he has not given up on the Saging Repablik concept.

“In the future, I hope we will reopen,” he said. — Maya M. Padillo

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