TransCo eyes P18.45-B FIT collection from consumers

Published January 22, 2017, 10:01 PM By Myrna M. Velasco

http://business.mb.com.ph/2017/01/22/transco-eyes-p18-45-b-fit-collection-from-consumers/

Fund administrator National Transmission Corporation (TransCo) is eyeing to collect P18.451 billion in feed-in-tariff allowance (FIT-All) this year from electricity consumers, a separate line item in the electric bills representing subsidies for on-grid renewable energy (RE) projects.

The clincher, however, is that even the projects with questionable completion and approval on their FIT certificates of compliance (FIT-COCs) had been included in the calculated petition of TransCo for the RE subsidy scheme.

For the targeted FIT-All collections, the state-run company factored in the various cost components – primarily FIT differential of P12.911 billion for year 2017; and under-recoveries of P3.576 billion for year 2016 or a total of P16.488 billion.

The forecast total payout to RE projects this year, inclusive of grid rates beyond the FIT differential, would hover at P26.150 billion.

“It is worthy to note that for the 12-month period October, 2015 to September, 2016, the average effective actual cost recovery rate as derived from the FIT-All Fund database is much lower than the forecast cost recovery rate used in the 2016 FIT-All application following the formula in the FIT-All Guidelines,” TransCo has noted.

For year 2017 in particular, the FIT differential set for collection across technologies are as follows: P4.171 billion for wind; P3.681 billion for solar; P2.502 billion for biomass; and P504.522 million for hydro.

The other costs integrated have been working capital allowance (WCA) of P1.957 billion; administrative allowance (AA) of P5.060 million; and disbursement allowance (DA) of P1.095 million.

On forecast national sales (FNS) of renewable energy-sourced power capacity of more than 74.375 million kilowatt hours (kWh), the initially computed FIT-All was pegged at P0.2481 per kilowatt hour.

However, due to some other factors considered by TransCo, that level had been subsequently pared to P0.2291 per kWh and that has been based on the nomination issued by the Department of Energy (DOE) for all RE plants that it had preliminarily validated to have reached 80-percent electro-mechanical completion. That was also the level that it petitioned for FIT-All at the Energy Regulatory Commission.

If it will just be based on qualified RE projects with certificates of endorsement (COEs) by the DOE, the FIT-All level has been calculated at P0.2273 per kWh.

“TransCo has opted to recommend and seek the Honorable Commission’s approval of a FIT-All rate lower than the total computed level of P0.2481 per kWh considering project status,” the company qualified.

It noted that since some projects are still for final validation by the energy department, the final FIT-All calculation had been reduced to P0.2291 per kWh for nominated projects as some have yet to be accorded with FIT certificates of compliance.