H. No. 16967 / 66 OG No. 3, 519 (January 19, 1970)

[ REPUBLIC ACT NO. 5791, June 21, 1969 ]

AN ACT GRANTING BURAUEN ELECTRIC AND ICE PLANT CORPORATION A FRANCHISE TO CONSTRUCT, OPERATE AND MAINTAIN AN ELECTRIC LIGHT AND POWER SYSTEM, AN ICE PLANT AND COLD STORAGE IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BURAUEN, PROVINCE OF LEYTE, AND TO SELL ELECTRIC CURRENT, ICE AND TO SUPPLY COLD STORAGE THEREIN.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:SECTION 1. Subject to the conditions imposed by this Act, there is hereby granted to Burauen Electric and Ice Plant Corporation for a period of twenty-five years from the approval of this Act a franchise to construct, operate and maintain an electric light and power system, an ice plant and cold storage in the Municipality of Burauen, Province of Leyte, for the purpose of manufacturing and distributing ice and supplying electric current and cold storage therein and to charge and collect a schedule of prices and rates for the electric current, ice and cold storage so furnished, which schedule of prices and rates shall at all times be subject to regulations by the Public Service Commission or its legal successor.SEC. 2. Said grantee shall generate and supply electric current, manufacture and supply ice up to the limit of the capacity of its plant, said limit to be determined by the Public Service Commission or its legal successor in such certificate of convenience and public necessity as may be issued by it as prescribed by Section four of this Act.SEC. 3. All the apparatus and appurtenances to be used by the grantee shall be modern, safe and first class in every respect, and the grantee, whenever the Public Service Commission or its legal successor shall determine that public interest reasonably requires it, shall change or alter any of its plant's apparatus and appurtenances at grantee's expense.SEC. 4. The grantee shall not exercise any right or privilege under this franchise nor commence any construction thereunder, unless and until the grantee shall first file with the Public Service Commission or its legal successor within one hundred and twenty days from the date of approval of this Act, the following:

1. Its written acceptance of the terms and provisions of this Act;
2. Its written acceptance of the terms and conditions of the certificate of convenience and public necessity required by law for the granting of this franchise and issued by the Public Service Commission of the form and character provided for in Commonwealth Act Numbered One hundred and forty-six, as amended; and
3. A document or documents evidencing receipt by the Treasurer of the Philippines of the deposit or deposits required by law for such certificate of convenience and public necessity as an earnest proof of good faith and guaranty that the grantee shall complete the work within the period fixed by the Commission.

If the grantee shall not commence the manufacture and distribution of ice and the supplying of cold storage in the places referred to in the certificate of convenience and public necessity, obtained and filed as herein provided, within such period as the Public Service Commission or its legal successor shall have fixed, unless prevented by an act of God, or force majeure, martial law, riot, civil commotion, usurpation by a military power or any other cause beyond the grantee's control, said Commission or its legal successor may in its discretion declare such certificate null and void, and the deposit or deposits made by the grantee forfeited in favor of the National Government.SEC. 5. After grantee's compliance with the requirements of the next preceding section, the Public Service Commission or its legal successor, by proper order shall authorize the construction of necessary work for the purposes of this franchise within a reasonable time to be determined by the Commission.Upon determination by the Public Service Commission or its legal successor after hearing, upon reasonable written notice to the grantee, that the grantee has violated any of the provisions of this section as to commencement or completion of work authorized by the certificate of convenience and public necessity, the said Commission or its legal successor shall declare the bond or bonds forfeited as liquidated damages and not *as penalty to the National Government. The said Commission or its legal successor shall order the return thereof by the Treasurer of the Philippines, to the grantee upon satisfactory completion of any work authorized by its certificate of convenience and public necessary, in accordance with the terms" and conditions of said certificate obtained, and the Treasurer of the Philippines shall return said deposit to the grantee together with the said interest and dividends immediately upon presentation to him of a certified copy of such order of the Public Service Commission or its successor.SEC. 6. This franchise is granted subject to the provisions of the Constitution and Commonwealth Act Numbered One hundred forty-six, as amended, and with the understanding and upon the condition that it shall be subject to amendment, alteration or repeal by the Congress of the Philippines when public interest so requires.The Public Service Commission shall prescribe, as a condition for the issuance of the certificate of convenience and public necessity to the grantee, that the certificate shall be valid only for a definite period of time and that the violation of any of these conditions shall cause the immediate cancellation of the certificate without the necessity of any express action on the part of the Commission.SEC. 7. The books, records and accounts of the grantee shall always be open to the inspection of the provincial treasurer or his authorized representatives, and it shall be the duty of the grantee to submit to the said treasurer quarterly reports in duplicate showing the gross receipts for the quarter past, one of which shall be forwarded by the said treasurer to the Auditor General, who shall keep the same on file.SEC. 8. The grantee shall be liable to pay the same taxes, unless exempted therefrom, on its business, real estate, buildings, and personal property, exclusive of this franchise, as other persons or corporations are now or hereafter may be required by law to pay.SEC. 9. The grantee, with the approval of the Congress of the Philippines first had, may sell, lease, grant, convey, assign, give in usufruct or transfer this franchise and all property and rights acquired thereunder to any individual, co-partnership, private, public or quasi-public association, corporation, or government stock company competent to operate the business hereby authorized but the transferee of the title to the franchise or any right or ownership or interest acquired under such sale, lease, grant, conveyance, assignment, gift in usufruct shall be firmly bound to comply with all the terms and conditions imposed upon the grantee by this franchise and by any all certificate of convenience and public necessity therefor issued by the Public Service Commission or its legal successor, and to accept the same subject to all existing terms and conditions.SEC. 10. The Public Service Commission shall have the power after a reasonable written notice to the grantee and a hearing of the interested parties, to declare the forfeiture of this franchise and all rights inherent in the same for failure on the part of the grantee to comply with any of the terms and conditions thereof, unless such failure shall have been directly and primarily caused by an act of God, force majeure, usurped right, uprising or other cause beyond the grantee's control. Against such declaration of forfeiture by the Public Service Commission the grantee may apply for the remedies provided in Sections thirty-four and thirty-six of Commonwealth Act Numbered One hundred and forty-six, as amended. The remedy provided herein shall not be a bar to any other remedy provided by existing laws for the forfeiture of this franchise.SEC. 11. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.Enacted without Executive approval, June 21, 1969.

Source: Supreme Court E-Library