by Myrna Velasco February 13, 2016
The policy was primarily packaged as
one that is good for the electric cooperatives (ECs), but now many of these
power utilities are in the front row seeking exemptions from the competitive
selection process (CSP) on their supply contracting – primarily for bilateral
deals already negotiated and signed prior to the November 6, 2015 cut-off date.
On the list given to media by the
Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), it is apparent that many of those seeking
to be spared from the CSP process are electric cooperatives.
These include the Philippine Rural
Electric Cooperative Association, Inc. (PHILRECA); the Association of Mindanao
Rural Electric Cooperatives Inc. (AMRECO); Agusan del Norte Electric
Cooperative, Inc.; some electric cooperatives in Leyte and the Bicol region;
Abra Electric Cooperative for its short-term supply contract on a request done
through the Department of Energy (DOE); Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative;
and some from the off-grid areas like Langogan Power Corporation and Palawan
Electric Cooperative.
ERC chairman Jose Vicente B. Salazar
told reporters that power generators like San Miguel Energy Corporation (SMEC)
and GNPower are also in the roster in regard to their negotiated supply
contracts with ECs.
“Some of them are asking for
exemptions, but we did not grant. San Miguel Energy Corporation (SMEC) asked
for exemption; GNPower asked for exemption for contracts it entered into (with
ECs) … meaning, they negotiated prior to November 6. They’re asking for
exemption from the CSP so they could execute these contracts,” he said.
The ERC chief expounded that the
option they have directed the power generators and ECs to undertake will be to
subject the specified contracts to Swiss challenge – or a bidding round in
which they must invite other parties to match or surpass the existing offers.
“No revisions as of now (on the CSP)
… the November 6 effectivity date is still there. No exceptions but we issued a
resolution two or three weeks ago that for contracts entered into prior to
November 6 but not filed, we will allow them to undergo Swiss Challenge,”
Salazar noted.
He qualified that these would be
applied specifically to contracts that have already been “negotiated, executed
and signed but not filed prior to November 6.”
For the off-grid areas, ERC Commissioner
Josefina Patricia M. Asirit said they cannot also be exempted primarily because
their operations are supported by subsidies being collected from the consumers.
“Even off-grid, they should also be
part of the CSP… especially off-grid because they are recipient of the
universal charge and I think there was a plea before on offers of power supply
contracts for off-grid areas,” she stressed.
Renewable energy (RE) developers
will likewise need to undergo CSP process when entering into bilateral supply contracts
with distribution utilities.
Salazar asserted “there is no
exemption for RE so they should do CSP for contracts because we did not make
any distinction.”
No comments:
Post a Comment