THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has approved the issuance of 113 certificates of compliance (CoCs) and provisional authorities to operate (PAOs) of generation companies (gencos) as of the third quarter of 2020.
Obtaining such certifications from the ERC is a prerequisite before a power company can start operating power generation facilities.
The regulatory agency said the CoC and PAOs issued to the gencos, qualified end-users, and entities with self-generation facilities corresponds to a total capacity of 4,213.83 megawatts (MW) of electricity.
However, in the second quarter, only 21 CoCs were issued considering the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) quarantine measures implemented by the government as early as March which, in turn, affected the processing of CoC applications.
“This shows the agency’s resiliency and commitment to achieve its targets despite the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. More than ever, we need to ensure that there will be sufficient power supply to keep the hospitals running around the clock, and that the students and workers who are studying and working through online will get continuous electricity connection,” said ERC Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer Agnes Devanadera in a statement on Monday.
Meanwhile, based on the ERC’s monitoring report during the period, no genco has breached the market share limitations per grid and national grid.
The ERC has set the installed generating capacity limit to 4,813.20 MW for Luzon; 1,709.97 MW for the Visayas; and 1,199.73 MW for Mindanao. On the national level, the installed generating capacity is set at 5,852.41 MW.
The agency also noted that some gencos failed to file or renew their respective CoCs within the prescribed period and were issued a show cause order.
“Our agency was able to quickly adapt to the ‘new normal’ and implemented alternative work arrangements that enabled the conduct of virtual power plant inspections, instead of the usual ocular or physical inspections. We also promulgated the ‘Guidelines Governing Electronic Applications, Filing and Virtual Hearings before the ERC’ to ensure the continuous performance of our mandate,” Devanadera added.
JORDEENE B. LAGARE