MANILA – Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) chair Francis Saturnino Juan on Friday cited the need for a reset in several components of the electricity bills, saying these have not been reviewed in over a decade.
In an interview over the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon program, ERC Chair lawyer Francis Saturnino Juan said transmission, distribution and generation charges are part of the items that power consumers pay, with the latter accounting for the biggest share in the electricity bill.
He explained that ERC opened the generation charges for competition to ensure that consumers will have to pay the cheapest rate.
To make sure that generation charges will be low, regulators have to make sure that providers have adequate capacity, thus, the improvement in the process for investors to put up power plants and have the needed supply, he said.
In terms of the transmission and distribution, Juan said these are regulated, but the last review was done more than 10 years ago.
“And that’s why I don’t know if the rates they are collecting are more than or less than what it should be,” he said.
Juan said they are currently reviewing the rules for the rate-setting process, which need to be promulgated to have a clear and streamlined process as soon as possible,
He said the hearing must finish before the distribution utilities and power cooperatives start a new regulatory period.
He hopes that the new rates will be in place within this year or early next year.
He underscored ERC’s mandate, aimed to ensure that there will be adequate power supply, and reliable transmission and distribution capacities to service the consumers at competitive rates. (PNA)