Danessa Rivera (The Philippine Star)
- January 31, 2020 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — State-run
National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) said it will exhaust legal actions amid
allegations that it had influence in Independent Electricity Market Operator of
the Philippines Inc. (IEMOP)’s takeover of the wholesale electricity spot
market (WESM).
In a statement, TransCo defended the
formation of IEMOP and its takeover of WESM, noting it is legal and mandated
under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001.
The statement was issued amid news
reports implicating TransCo president and CEO Melvin Matibag and Secretary
Alfonso Cusi of the Department of Energy (DOE).
“First, except for its
transitory role as initial market operator, TransCo has no relevance to the
issue on the nature, composition and operations of IEMOP, the creation of which
was upon the directive of the DOE, not TransCo,” spokesman Andre de Jesus said
in a statement.
De Jesus said the DOE’s
participation in the formation of IEMOP is not only legal but also mandated by
law.
“The mere insinuation that TransCo – or attorney Matibag himself – can
influence the DOE is not just libelous; it is, in itself, completely
preposterous. Second, as regards references to Sec. Cusi, his years of
dedicated – and untarnished – public service speak for themselves,” he said.
“In the meantime, we
are exploring all legal remedies to vindicate the rights of the persons
wrongfully implicated in these articles and, more important, to restore the
public’s faith in TransCo’s service to the Filipino People,” De Jesus said.
TransCo also reiterated
the DOE’s statement on the legality of the IEMOP.
The state-run firm said
the IEMOP as independent market operator (IMO) was formed by the DOE and the
Philippine Electricity Market Corp. (PEMC) – the former WESM operator –
pursuant to Section 30 of EPIRA.
The DOE issued a
circular in January 2018 for the IMO Transition Plan, enacted precisely in
compliance with this directive.
“The creation of IEMOP,
therefore, was not only legal – it was, and more important, mandated by the law
(EPIRA) itself,” De Jesus said.
On the issue of the
alleged absence of competitive selection process (CSP) in the formation of
IEMOP, TransCo said EPIRA does not have a provision requiring competitive
bidding.
It also said
individuals comprising IEMOP are from the power Industry, particularly from
PEMC, “which had formerly managed registration of market participants; received
generation offers; set market prices and dispatch schedules of generation
plants; and handled billing, settlement, and collections, among other
functions.”
“Simply put, IEMOP
merely assumed the functions – indeed, continued the mandate – of the PEMC,” De
Jesus said.
Lastly, TransCo said
IEMOP does not collect P0.50 for every kilowatt-hour that every consumer pays
in their monthly electric bill, and that it only collects less than one centavo
for every kilowatt-hour used by electricity consumers.
“This amount, approved
by no less than the regulator of the Power Industry – the Energy Regulatory
Commission (ERC) itself – and exponentially less than what has been reported,
is necessary to cover IEMOP’s own budgetary requirements. PEMC also receives a
share of these market fees as the WESM’s governance arm,” De Jesus said.
Last week, Puwersa ng
Bayaning Atleta party-list Rep. Jericho Nograles questioned how and why
the IEMOP got the deal to manage the WESM without going through competitive
selection process, calling it a “sweetheart deal.”
Nograles also said the
new WESM operator, which only had a P7,000 capitalization, collects 50 centavos
for every kilowatt-hour paid by consumers in their electricity bills.
The lawmaker called on
the House of Representatives’ committee on energy to investigate the anomaly on
the basis that IEMOP’s qualifications are highly questionable.
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