DOE creates task force to assess WESM performance

By Lenie Lectura - April 4, 2019

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/04/04/doe-creates-task-force-to-assess-wesm-performance/

THE Department of Energy (DOE) has created a task force to assess the performance of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) under the governance of an independent market operator (IMO).

DOE Circular 03-0009 designated DOE Assistant Secretary Leonido Pulido III as chairman of the task force. The members are DOE Assistant Secretary Redentor Delola and Director Patrick Aquino.

“The DOE deems it is necessary to assess the performance of the WESM under the current regime to ensure transparency, competitiveness, protection of public interest and integrity of the WESM,” the DOE said.

The Philippine Electricity Market board used to operate the electricity spot market until Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc. (IEMOP) took over. Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi was then chairman of the PEM board. The representatives of the board included those from the government, power-generation companies, transmission utilities and distribution utilities.

IEMOP now operates the WESM. Among others, it oversees transaction billing and settlement procedures, and maintains and publishes a registry of WESM trading participants. It also sets the dispatch schedule of all power facilities, and monitors daily market-trading activities.

The Philippine Electricity Market Corp. (PEMC) remains the spot market’s governing body.

The newly created task force will assess the performance of PEMC as the governance arm of the WESM, the performance of IEMOP as the IMO and the overall-performance of the spot market. It will make a recommendation to the energy secretary based on its assessment within 45 days upon effectivity of the circular.

“The DOE is mandated to supervise the restructuring of the electric power industry. As the government agency authorized to design the market and its governance, the market structure provided under DC 2018-01-0002 is subjected to continuing evaluation and assessment of the DOE to determine whether the said arrangement is still relevant to the implementation of the IMO,” the circular stated.