The proponent of the Competitive Selection Process (CSP) admitted on Tuesday that the 120-day time frame for the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to craft the implementing guidelines (IG) is not enough.
Energy Secretary Zenaida Monsada said after the ceremonial switch on of the 100-kilowatt solar rooftop project between the PNOC-Renewable Corp. and Philippine Hearth Center that the Department of Energy’s (DOE) circular is “complicated.”
Monsada said it was after the series of public consultations conducted by the DOE early this month when the agency realized that the October 27 deadline could not be met. “Based sa public consultation, madami pa talagang dapat himayin, masyado complex ang circular,” she said in an interview.
For instance, she cited the complexity of tapping a third party to conduct the auction. “Almost all of the terms in the CSP need to be defined,” she said, adding that aside from the IG, there must be mechanisms in place to successfully carry out the process.
The DOE circular mandates all distribution utilities and electric cooperatives to bid out their power requirements instead of entering into bilateral contracts.
The ERC, in its draft rules, said the tasks of the third party are to develop the CSP design for the power supply agreements (PSAs); develop bidders’ qualification criteria; draft and propose the CSP rules; develop and propose the PSA template; and manage the conduct of the CSP up to the award and execution of the PSAs.
Monsada said she will meet with the ERC on November 4 to decide if a partial set of IG should be issued. “We have a working draft and both the DOE and the ERC are exchanging comments on this. We, at the DOE, are on the policy side while the ERC tackles the regulatory side. We have to marry these,” she said when asked what to expect after meeting.
Under DOE Circular 2015-06-008, the ERC has 120 days, or until October 27, from issuance of the policy to release the rules governing the CSP.
But it was the DOE that requested a meeting with the ERC before any announcement is made by both agencies. However, the meeting could not take place prior to the October 27 deadline because Monsada attended a business trip.
Monsada replaced former Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla, who signed the controversial DOE circular before he left office in June.
“We will defer any announcement on the CSP as we prepare for the meeting requested by the DOE secretary,” ERC Chairman Jose Vicente Salazar said in a text message on October 28.
The ERC chief could also not say if the IG would be issued right after the meeting. However, Salazar assured that there would be “an appropriate announcement on the matter will be made after the said meeting is held.”