• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has ordered all distribution utilities (DUs) within the Luzon and Visayas grids, including the electric cooperatives in Negros, not to charge their consumers the generation charge based on the preliminary statement (PS) on power purchased from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).
In its order June 10, the ERC said the DUs should wait until the final statement (FS) is released by the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP), the market operator of WESM, to all market participants.
“This will ensure that the DUs’ billings to their consumers will reflect the accurate values corresponding to WESM purchases,” the ERC order said.
The ERC took note that it had suspended the WESM operations when the Luzon and Visayas grids were on yellow and red alerts last month due to low or insufficient power supply.
“During the intervals when the market was suspended, the administered price (AP) and, in certain instances, the secondary price cap (SPC) were applied” as per WESM rules.
The ERC said it simulated the impact of the application of the AP and SPC to the intervals affected by the market suspension in the Luzon and Visayas grids.
The result of the simulation in the Visayas grid for the May billing period, which is from April 26 to May 25, showed that the average indicative load weighted average prices is P13.441 per kilowatt-hour without the SPC and AP, and P8.769/kWh if with SPC and AP.
But the IEMOP already released its preliminary statement (PS) to all market participants June 4, hence the ERC order.
“The PS is based on the market clearing price and still subject to adjustments…that will be finalized when the IEMOP issues the FS, which takes into account the application of the AP and SPC,” the ERC said.
It added that with final adjustments, the WESM/generation charges will be significantly lower, so the bills to be paid by consumers would also be reduced, considering that bulk of the electricity purchased by DUs comes from the spot market. | CGC
