ERC: Meralco ‘bill shock’ just follows the law
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on Tuesday defended the extra charges in electricity bills that have sent many consumers fuming following a recent increase in Meralco rates.
In a statement, the regulator said it acknowledged the public’s complaint over what it called Meralco’s “bill shock,” but maintained that the charges “are imposed in accordance with existing laws and policies.”
The itemized costs include a “lifeline subsidy” rate as well as the customers’ share of the costs of funding senior citizen discounts and renewable energy initiatives.
The lifeline subsidy rate, which is in accordance with the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira) of 2001 (Republic Act No. 9136), is collected as a support fund for both the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and the costs incurred by marginalized power consumers.
That sector is provided a discount of 100 percent for monthly electricity use of up to 50 kilowatt-hours.
The senior citizen subsidy, granted under the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010, provides a 5-percent discount to eligible elders consuming not more than 100 kWh a month.
Other allowances
Two more items charged to consumers are the feed-in tariff (Fit-All) and green energy auction allowances. These are aimed at enticing more investments in renewable energy.
A “universal charge,” in accordance with Epira, is also collected to finance missionary electrification (providing power to remote, off-grid areas), watershed rehabilitation as well as the debts and other obligations of the National Power Corp.
Many of the extra charges have been billed to consumers for almost two decades now. The lifeline subsidy rate has been in place since 2001, while the senior citizen subsidy and Fit-All charges have been in effect since 2010.
‘Pass-through costs’
The ERC said that instead of incorporating the cost of the discounts into the rates of distribution utilities (DUs) like Meralco, it “opted to treat [the charges] as pass-through costs to avoid any over- or under-recoveries for [these] DUs.”
“None of them profit from these charges as they are pass-through costs,” the commission said.
“DUs serve as collecting agents, remitting the amounts to the appropriate entities,” the ERC said, adding that it “did not independently invent or create these charges.”
The commission said it is only “diligently implement[ing]” government policies and laws passed by Congress.
The ERC said it is committed to “ensuring that regulated entities recover only just and reasonable costs based on the legal standards under Epira.”
Additional ‘burdens’
Earlier this month, the ERC granted Meralco’s petition to bill its consumers more than P4 billion for a gas-plant operation by Excellent Energy Resources Inc., a subsidiary of Meralco also jointly owned by San Miguel Global Power and Aboitiz Power.
The recovery of this cost would mean a monthly rate increase of P0.1099/kWh in a full-year period beginning in September, according to the regulator.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (Philreca) released on Tuesday a position paper on the proposed expansion of senior citizen discounts on power and water services.
Philreca acknowledged several proposals in Congress seeking to increase the 5-percent discount for seniors to as much as 15 percent and expand their power consumption threshold from 100 kWh monthly to as high as 200 kWh.
But the group also noted the “burden of providing social protection [on] non-senior consumers.”
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said complaints over the power bill shock will be tackled on Wednesday by the Senate’s ad hoc Proactive Response and Oversight for Timely and Effective Crisis Strategy (Protect) committee.
Proposal on savings use
Meanwhile, Malacañang said President Marcos will ask Congress to urgently pass an “Uplift” (Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport) law to help ease the continuing energy and price shocks caused by the Middle East conflict.
Cabinet members who are part of the Uplift committee discussed on Tuesday a proposal authorizing the government to tap unreleased or unauthorized appropriations from the 2025 and 2026 national budgets, and to use savings for approved programs.
The proposed measure drew comparisons to the Disbursement Acceleration Program of the late former President Benigno Aquino III—a savings-funded budget initiative by the executive branch which the Supreme Court later ruled as unconstitutional.
Palace press officer Claire Castro said Mr. Marcos considers the proposal a “priority” but gave no timeline for its submission to Congress. —WITH REPORTS FROM DEXTER CABALZA AND TINA G. SANTOS
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