The Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMC), regulator of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), seeks the Energy Regulatory Commission’s (ERC) approval of additional spot market transaction fees to be charged to Renewable Energy Market (REM) participants to support operational costs.
Based on a Manila Bulletin report, PEMC filed an application before the ERC for a transaction fee rate of Php1.76 per megawatt-hour (MWh) or Php0.00176 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for trading activities intended for the RE market.
PEMC said it will need a total of Php52.39 million for the initial operating year of the REM, which follows a policy measure the government has set forth to stimulate the sector’s investment appetite.
The quasi-judicial regulator has scheduled virtual public hearings on the REM transaction fee petition of PEMC between June 1 to July 20.
In seeking the additional fee, PEMC said it considered the capital expenses (capex) and operating expenses (opex) it would incur in the development phase of the RE Market, as well as the initial year of operations
The capex includes improvement or replacement of assets like back-up systems, while the opex covers salaries and staff benefits. The company also included expenses for the first operating year of the REM, which includes RE registrar functions and necessary software modifications.
The RE Market was established in line with Republic Act 9513 or the RE Act.
According to PEMC, any further delay in starting the commercial operation of the REM would only keep the law from achieving its objective of encouraging stakeholders in the power industry and boosting RE use by developing national and local capabilities in using and promoting RE systems.
