A House of Representatives official has urged the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to bring a Court of Appeals (CA) ruling from December 2023 to the Supreme Court (SC). The official, Rep. Dan Fernandez, who is also the vice chairman of the House committee on energy, believes that this ruling could lead to higher power rates for consumers.
In a letter sent to the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) on May 2, Fernandez requested the OSG to appeal the case on behalf of the ERC. He emphasized the importance of protecting consumers from price gouging, especially in a time when the demand for power supply is high.
Fernandez also called on the ERC to refrain from approving new power deals until the issue is resolved. He specifically highlighted the need to closely scrutinize and withhold approval of new power supply agreements (PSAs) between Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and the power generation companies involved in the CA case.
The congressman raised concerns about two power plants owned by San Miguel Corp. (SMC) that are seeking to supply emergency power to Meralco. The PSAs for these plants were terminated following the ERC ruling last year that denied Meralco’s and SMC plants’ petition for a power rate increase.
Fernandez stressed the importance of waiting for the SC to provide a final judgment on the controversial power supply deals decided by the CA before approving any new PSAs between Meralco and SMC. He pointed out that it has been more than four months since the CA decision, and there has been no update on whether an appeal or petition has been filed by the ERC or the OSG.
The lawmaker urged the ERC to hold off on approving any new PSAs until the SC resolves the issue with finality, to ensure that consumers are not burdened with higher power rates.
