RAZON-LED MORE Electric and Power Corp. said the Supreme Court’s decision upholding its authority to distribute electricity in Iloilo City would make its work “unimpeded” in the area.
“This decision is very much welcome so we could concentrate on the operations of MORE Power in delivering the best services to the consumers of Iloilo City. It gives us the assurance that what we are doing here in Iloilo City will be unimpeded as far as the constitutionality issue is concerned,” MORE President and Chief Operating Officer Roel Z. Castro told BusinessWorld in a text message on Thursday.
He added that the firm was “very happy” that the court affirmed its previous decision declaring that two provisions of Republic Act No. 11212 or the law granting MORE a franchise to operate a power distribution system in Iloilo are within the bounds of the law.
Section 10 of R.A. 11212 allows MORE to exercise the power of eminent domain as needed for the “efficient establishment, improvement, and maintenance of its services and acquire private property.”
Section 17 authorizes Panay Electric Co., Inc. (PECO) to operate the existing distribution system in its franchise until MORE completes its own distribution system within two years.
In an 18-page document posted on its website this week, the Supreme Court said that it had no reason to change its September 2020 ruling, which upheld the validity of provisions of the law for MORE to take over power distribution assets in Iloilo City.
“After a careful review of the arguments raised by PECO, the Court finds no reason to depart from its Decision dated September 15, 2020,” the court said in a decision shared on May 25.
The court said PECO, which has been the electric provider of Iloilo for more than 90 years but whose legislative franchise expired in January 2019, asked the court to take a second look at the legal implications of its earlier decision.
“In its motion for reconsideration, PECO faults the Court in allowing the expropriation of its distribution system for the same public purpose it was already devoted to. While PECO concedes that its previous legislative franchise allows expropriation of its assets and distribution system upon the termination of its franchise, it also asserts that this power may be exercised only by the government and its political subdivisions, and not by private entities such as MORE,” the decision read.
PECO’s argument did not convince the court.
“The exercise of the right to expropriate given to MORE under its franchise is a delegated authority granted by Congress. The restrictive view that expropriation may be exercised by the State alone, without any consideration for the State’s authority to delegate its powers, cannot be upheld,” the High Court said.
MORE, led by businessman Enrique K. Razon, Jr., was granted a 25-year franchise in February 2019 to provide power to Iloilo City, replacing PECO.
BusinessWorld reached out to PECO, which has not yet replied as of press time. — Angelica Y. Yang
