By Lenie Lectura - August 8, 2019
THE National Transmission Corp.
(Transco) will ask the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to reconsider
its earlier ruling denying the former’s bid to intervene in the petition for
the approval of the IPO (initial public offering) extension filed by the
National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP).
“We will file a motion for
reconsideration. If ERC will not reconsider, we will appeal it all the way to
the Supreme Court,” said Transco President Melvin Matibag in a text message.
The ERC earlier denied for lack of
merit the joint petition for intervention filed by Transco and the Power Sector
Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM). At the same time, the ERC
ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear and decide on NGCP’s petition.
“It is clear that RA 9511 and the
Concession Agreement affirmed that neither PSALM nor Transco has the authority
to regulate or supervise NGCP’s compliance with its franchise law, only this
Commission.”
“Therefore, PSALM and TransCo has no
direct and substantial interest in the instant petition, more so on its
outcome, lacking one of the requirements of the Commission to grant their
petition for intervention. Hence, the same should be denied,” stated the ERC
order, signed by ERC commissioner Josefina Patricia Magpale-Asirit, the
oversight committee for legal service head.
Matibag described as “erroneous” the
ERC ruling, adding, “We will issue the statement after we file the motion
for reconsideration.”
Separately, Energy Secretary Alfonso
Cusi said TransCo “will do what is necessary.”
“That hurts. NGCP should have gone
public 10 years ago. But that’s beyond the DOE (Department of Energy). ERC is a
quasi-judicial body so we have to go to court,” said the DOE chief.
Under the law, NGCP should make a
public offering of the shares representing at least 20 percent of its
outstanding capital stock within 10 years from the commencement of its
operation, which was on January 15, 2009.
NGCP filed a petition for extension
of the listing of the shares, and that motion is now pending with ERC.
The grid operator said the current
market condition is not suitable for the listing and public offering of its
shares because of the absence of the final determination of price control
arrangements from the ERC for the 4th Regulatory Period (2016-2020); the
pending disputes among NGCP, TransCo and PSALM which are now in arbitration;
and the public threats made against NGCP’s concession, whether or not these are
raised in arbitration.
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