The Taguig City Regional Trial Court (RTC) has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) against Manila Electric Company’s (MERALCO) forthcoming public bidding for an additional 1,000 megawatts (MW) of power supply.
In a report by GMA News Online, Taguig City RTC-Branch 15-FC Executive Judge Byron San Pedro approved the Malampaya gas field consortium’s demand for an urgent 72-hour TRO towards MERALCO’s competitive selection procedure (CSP) for the distribution utility firm’s (DU) 600-MW and 400-MW power supply requirements.
The court order, issued on July 31, revealed that the plaintiffs’ application for a 72-hour TRO was approved, subject to a bond posting of Php 5,000,000.
The TRO issued will halt MERALCO from conducting its CSP under its current Terms of Reference, including bid receipt, award, and implementation, meaning it would have an effect on MERALCO’s Invitation to Bid Contract Capacity of 600 MW, with a bid submission deadline on August 2, 2024, and the 400-MW contract with a deadline on September 3, 2024.
This came after the Malampaya Consortium submitted a 54-page complaint arguing that the bid terms violated laws favoring indigenous natural gas and threatened the country’s energy security and sovereignty.
Additionally, the plaintiffs claimed that MERALCO’s CSP process was flawed and violated existing laws.
The consortium also argued that the Terms of Reference (TOR) favored imported LNG and coal, discouraging suppliers using indigenous natural gas and misrepresenting the least cost available, as decreased demand for Malampaya gas would reduce government revenue, which had already reached Php 374 billion as of 2023, with Php 26 billion earned in 2022 alone.
To this, MERALCO Regulatory Management head Jose Ronald Valles responded that they had not yet received the TRO but stressed that all CSPs complied with Department of Energy (DOE) and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) rules.
Valles added that it is important to conduct the CSP to avoid higher power rates for consumers and reiterated that any generation company could submit offers, with contracts awarded to the lowest compliant bidder.
