By
Lenie Lectura - June 26, 2018
TWO officials in the
power sector dismissed the possibility of the Philippine Stock Exchange’s (PSE)
operating the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), the country’s trading
floor of electricity.
Newly appointed
president of the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines
(IEMOP) Francis Saturnino C. Juan said the proposal is not being considered at
the moment.
“We’ve had discussions
on that, but at the moment, it is not considered in the transition plan”
because such move requires “technical capability,” he said.
“Maybe, in the future,
if there are other markets that will be set up for the power sector. But, for
now, it was not contemplated into the transition,” Juan said.
Energy Secretary
Alfonso G. Cusi, who said in October last year the proposal was “worth
studying,” said on Monday night the proposal is now regarded as a “future
option if they will fail.”
Juan and Cusi are
referring to the newly elected board of directors of the Philippine Electricity
Market Corp. (PEMC) and the IEMOP.
WESM was previously
operated by the PEMC. With the election, Cusi stepped down as PEMC chairman.
This paved the way for independent stakeholders to be elected to the position.
The election also moves the WESM a step closer to attaining independent market
operator (IMO) status.
Fifteen board members,
including 11 sectoral representatives, were elected during PEMC’s Annual
General Membership Meeting held late Monday.
The elected board
members from the power-generation sector were Emmanuel V. Rubio (SN Aboitiz
Power), Victor Emmanuel B. Santos Jr. (First Gen), Elenita Go (SMC Global
Power) and Juan Eugenio L. Roxas (FDC Utilities Inc.).
The distribution sector
is represented by Rolando M. Cagampan (Manila Electric Co.), Allan L. Laniba
(Leyte Electric Cooperative III), Felino Herbert Palpallatoc Agdigos (Ilocos
Norte Electric Cooperative) and Gilbert A. Pagobo (Mactan Electric Co. Inc.).
Noel Villas Aboboto
(TeaM Energy) and Ronald Dylan P. Concepcion (National Grid Corp. of the
Philippines) will represent the supply and system operator sectors,
respectively.
Four new independent
directors were also elected, namely, Rauf A. Tan, Oscar E. Ala, Jesus Lim
Arranza and Peter Leslie Wallace.
“It has been a fruitful
two years. Now we look forward to a new era, as PEMC’s elected representatives
take over the reins of governing the electricity market,” Cusi said in a speech
during the event.
The election of a new
PEM board brings the industry a step closer to the long-delayed transition to
the IMO.
Cusi has remained firm
in calling for the IMO’s establishment, overdue for more than a decade from
what the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 originally required.
While PEMC and the IMO
will be independent from the government, the Department of Energy will maintain
oversight of the WESM operations.
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