THREE of the seven applications for the Power Supply Agreement (PSA) filed by the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) may get the regulator’s nod soon.
One of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) commissioners said on Monday that the agency is “hopeful” it can decide on the three within the year.
“Yes. It’s still long before 2017 ends,” ERC Commissioner Josefina Patricia Magpale-Asirit said. “Hopefully, barring any other complications, we should be able to consider a lot of the issues that have been put forth on the applications put before us”.
Of the seven applications, three “have not been heard yet”, while one was issued a provisional authority. The remaining three applications, Asirit said, are “in different stages”.
“There is one that was issued provisional approval only because there was the ability to benchmark. It’s not a greenfield plant, and it was necessary for the same to be addressed as an interim measure to meet demand requirements in a particular period; that’s the PEDC [Panay Energy Development Corp.] contract,” Asirit added. “Three have actually not been heard yet because there’s no submission of environmental compliance certificate.”
The provisional authority that was granted PEDC in July last year was granted in view of the frequent yellow-alert status of power reserves at that time.
“We must remember that stable supply of power is among the anchors of our economy,” ERC commissioner Alfredo Non said. “We granted the provisional approval because it will be more beneficial to the consuming public and the country as a whole to have a continuing stable power supply than have rotating brownouts which is more damaging to the economy.”
Meralco has inked seven PSAs with PEDC, Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc. (RP Energy), Saint Raphael Power Generation Corp. (SRPGC), Atimonan One Energy Inc. (A1EI), Global Luzon Energy Development Corp. (GLEDC), Central Luzon Premiere Power Corp. (CLPPC) and Mariveles Power Generation Corp. (MPGC).
