Industry stakeholders on Thursday vowed to exhaust all available remedies to block House Bill (HB) 8179, which seeks to grant Solar Para sa Bayan Corp. a nationwide franchise.
Members of the Philippine Solar and Energy Storage Alliance, Organization of Socialized Housing Developers of the Philippines, Center for Renewable Energy and Science and Technology, Renewable Energy Association of the Philippines, Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (Philreca) and Confederation of Solar Developers in the Philippines (CSDP) opposed the proposed bill filed by Deputy Speaker Arthur C. Yap and Compostela Valley Rep. Maria Carmen S. Zamora.
“We are deeply troubled and alarmed by HB 8179 because it effectively grants a monopoly and exempts one private company from the rules of competition and oversight provided under Epira [Electric Power Industry Reform Act] and the RE [renewable energy] Act,” they said.
The proposed measure seeks to grant Solar Para sa Bayan Corp., led by businessman Leandro Leviste, a nationwide franchise to construct, install, establish, operate and maintain distributable power technologies and mini-grid systems throughout the Philippines to improve access to sustainable energy.
The bill was filed last August 6 and was immediately referred to the Committee on Legislative Franchises last August 8.
It was deliberated and approved by the same committee on August 29 and a hearing on the committee report was held last September 3.
“We’re fighting a goliath here,” said PSESA President Theresa Capellan.
Leviste, who is also the president of Solar Philippines, is the son of Sen. Loren B. Legarda.
“We will lobby during the deliberation. We believe a number of congressmen will oppose this. If this will go up to the Senate, we also lobby against it. We think there are also good people there whom we can work with to get this bill blocked. If anything else happens, our legal counsel said this is in violation of the constitution. We will file a TRO [temporary restraining order] before the Supreme Court,” said Capellan.
CSDP President Don Mario Dia said there is no legal necessity to grant Solar Para Sa Bayan a nationwide franchise, since there are existing regulatory frameworks allowing any entity—whether private or public, including local government units and nongovernment organizations, to participate in the provision of electricity in unserved or un-energized areas.
“The Epira already lays down the legal requirements for any entity to participate in the generation and supply sectors. All generators and suppliers of electricity in contestable markets do not need any national franchise. The supply rules already in place provide that the prices to be charged by suppliers are not subject to the regulation of the ERC [Energy Regulatory Commission],” he said.
Philreca Executive Director Janeene Colingan said only government agencies were allowed to attend the hearings. “We have not been invited by Congress. We just found out that the committee report was approved already. What makes Solar Para Sa Bayan very important as compared to other applicants for the legislative franchise?”
Capellan said HB 8179 only seeks to establish a monopoly that will engage in the entire electric power value chain (generation, transmission, distribution and supply) with no limitation as to the capacity of the systems it can install or the service area it will cover.
She pointed out that HB 8179 grants the right to access any transmission or distribution system without any reciprocal obligation on its part, specifically compliance with existing and relevant laws and rules.
Further, she said, no franchise obligation, during its franchise term, is imposed upon Solar Para sa Bayan to ensure full electrification for all.
“There are no impositions on performance or service requirements that would ensure the achievement of its objective to provide electricity in unserved and un-energized localities. More alarming is the provision exempting Solar Para Sa Bayan from the regulatory powers of the Energy Regulatory Commission,” said Capellan.
The groups called on Congress to junk HB 8179. They proposed instead that lawmakers craft another bill that promotes fair and healthy competition, fosters reforms and innovations, for Qualified Third Parties in unserved and missionary areas, enabling the continuing expansion of clean energy projects, broader and more efficient services, and lower electricity rates.
‘Super monopoly’
AT the Lower House, some 15 House members filed House Resolution (HR) No. 2182, which seeks to block efforts to grant a “super monopoly” franchise to Solar Para Sa Bayan Corp.
The HR No. 2182 seeks to revert HBs 8013 and 8015, which seek to grant Solar a franchise to operate a franchise to construct, install, establish, operate and maintain solar minigrid systems nationwide, to the Committee level for further deliberation.
In a statement, Rep. Mikee L. Romero of 1-Pacman Party-list said HB 8179 was a violation of the Constitutional provisions on monopolies and the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001.
“The unconstitutional nature of this bill grants Solar Para sa Bayan Corp. a master franchise to operate all throughout the Philippine archipelago. This is a blanket authority that would allow it to infringe and encroach on all existing franchises of main transmission grids,” Romero stated.