• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has clarified that Negros Electric and Power Corp. (NEPC) was compliant with its allowable system loss cap in 2025, correcting its earlier identification of NEPC as among the private distribution utilities (DUs) that exceeded the limit.
In a statement on Aug. 24, the ERC said Negros Power is still covered by an interim system loss cap of 8.5 percent because it only recently assumed the distribution system previously operated by a rural electric cooperative.
Negros Power was granted its legislative franchise in 2024 under Republic Act No. 12011.
The law provides the company a five-year transition period from the grant of its certificate of public convenience and necessity to achieve the 5.5-percent system loss cap applicable to private DUs.
“Against this interim cap, NEPC’s reported 2025 feeder loss of 7.5 percent is within, not in excess of, its applicable cap,” the ERC said.
The clarification came after the ERC listed Negros Power during a Senate committee on energy hearing last week as among the DUs that exceeded their feeder loss caps in 2025. The presentation cited a 7.5-percent feeder loss for the company.
The Senate hearing was held in connection with proposed measures seeking to remove the system losses charge from consumers’ monthly electricity bills, following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to Congress during his fifth State of the Nation Address last July.
System loss refers to electricity generated but lost before it reaches consumers. Under the existing system, utilities are allowed to recover the cost of allowable losses through a charge included in electricity bills.
The ERC generally sets a 5.5-percent allowable system loss cap for private DUs while rural electric cooperatives are subject to caps ranging from 8.25 percent to 12 percent.
With the ERC’s clarification, Negros Power’s 7.5-percent feeder loss in 2025 is considered compliant with the 8.5-percent interim cap applicable to the company during its transition period. | GPB
