Phinma Energy was granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) by the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) against the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Corp. (PSALM) and its former chief executive Emmanuel Ledesma on multiple grounds regarding its administrator obligations in the Unified Leyte Geothermal Power Plants (ULGPP).
“The grant of the prayer for a temporary restraining order (TRO) will restrain PSALM from terminating the agreement on the ground of administrator’s default and prevent PSALM from asserting any further claim to the detriment of the corporation,” Phinma said in a disclosure on Wednesday.
The energy firm holds a 40 MW max capacity in ULGPP, according to its IPPA contract, which PSALM also tried to abolish on grounds of administrator’s default.
“In the event that the court rules in favor of Phinma Energy, the agreement may be invalidated and an award for damages may be made to the corporation. An adverse decision may open the company to possible financial claims by PSALM,” Phinma added.
The company said the case filed against PSALM has “no material adverse effect” on its operations.
Phinma Energy was one of the companies that were awarded IPPA contracts to administer strips of energy of the ULGPP as per the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) trade in the country.
Unfortunately, Super Typhoon Yolanda wiped out proportions of Region 8 in November 2013, which also damaged ULGPP, during the same month the contracts were declared to its respective administrative firms.
Phinma Energy has since faced difficulties in the plants’ damage control with renegotiations regarding the terms of agreement, which was only given to the company a year after the incident. Relief measures in the vicinity were also being handled by the company.
As a result, PSALM put Phinma Energy in the administrator default, terminating its IPPA contract as well as forfeiting its performance bond in the ULGPP.
