The Department of Energy (DOE) has lifted the one-month suspension of Semirara Mining and Power Corporation’s (SMPC) coal trader accreditation.
In a disclosure to the local bourse, SMPC said it received a new DOE resolution dated March 16, 2021 modifying its issuance dated October 15, 2019 that imposed the suspension as a result of the company’s transaction with Gold Anchorage, an unaccredited coal trader.
The Consunji-led firm then appealed to the department to reconsider its ruling.
Along with the suspension’s lifting, however, came a warning for the Consunji-led firm to “exercise more prudence and care in conducting its coal trading related transactions in order to avoid similar issues and cases in the future.”
The new resolution also lowered the company’s fine by nearly thrice to Php610,000 from Php1.74 million. SMPC was fined for violating a DOE Department Circular, specifically the unabated and continuous coal trading despite the suspension of its accreditation.
SMPC, the country’s only integrated energy company that mines coal as the fuel source of its power plants, recently recorded a 66% decline in its net income for 2020.