Over 5,000 megawatts worth of contracts remains frozen on the table of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) due to the lack of quorum.
In a Senate hearing this week, ERC chairperson Agnes Devanadera said that they are unable to decide on the contracts covering 5, 493.38 MW of supply.
The pending contracts include 43 new certificates of commerciality (COC) worth 2, 977.89 MW, 47 expired COCs worth 1,971.MW for renewable, and 29 expired power supply agreements (PSAs) covering 544 MW of power.
“Of current urgency is the pending new COCs and renewal of COCs without which new and old plants cannot operate. COCs are also needed for registration in the WESM (wholesale electricity spot market) to transact in the market,” the Philippine Independent Power Producers Association Inc. (PIPPA) said in a report by the Philippine Star.
Being a collegial body, ERC needs at least three members of its commission to enable it to adopt any ruling, order, resolution, decision, or other acts in the exercise of its quasi-judicial and quasi-legislative functions.
Devanadera said that she has submitted documents, like the list of pending cases, to the Malacanang this month as it sought guidance from the president following the suspension of the four ERC commissioners by the Office of the Ombudsman in 2017.