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Another payment deadline looms for CUC
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Posted on May 11 2005
The Commonwealth Utilities Corp. is due to make another $3.5-million payment to Mobil Oil Marianas on Sunday, even as CUC just paid $3.14 million for fuel deliveries made by Mobil since the beginning of May.
CUC executive director Lorraine Babauta said yesterday that Mobil has demanded payment of the $8-million credit that CUC had incurred over the period of their recently expired contract.
The utility firm has yet to finalize a new contract with Mobil.
Babauta said $3.5 million of this amount is due on May 15, while the remaining $4.5 million should be paid on June 15.
CUC, however, has asked Mobil to extend the deadline for the first payment to June 15. Babauta expressed hope that Mobil would grant the request in consideration of the $3.14-million cash that CUC paid to the oil firm over the past week.
Babauta said $1.3 million of the cash came from advance payments from the Department of Finance while the rest was sourced from utility revenues.
Based on CUC data, the utility firm has received delivery of 1.862 million gallons of fuel from Mobil from May 3 to 10.
Of this amount, 1.31 million gallons were for Lower Base power plant, which has an average daily use of 66,000 gallons. Puerto Rico power plant received 195,000 gallons, Tinian got 252,000, and Rota received 105,000 gallons.
Babauta said CUC had paid Mobil in cash for all but one delivery, which was made to Rota on May 10. That delivery cost $218,043.
CUC’s two-year contract with Mobil expired on April 30.
Currently, CUC is still seeking a $10-million letter of credit, which Mobil had set as condition for the signing of a new contract.
CUC has so far approached two institutions: the Marianas Public Land Trust and Bank of Guam.
