MANILA ELECTRIC Co. (Meralco) is asking the energy regulator to consider only data that have been previously verified as “pertinent, accurate and relevant” when it approves the feed-in-tariff allowance (FiT-All) to be granted to renewable energy developers.

Lawrence S. Fernandez, Meralco vice-president and head of utility economics, said based on data provided by the Philippine Electricity Market Corp. (PEMC), the wholesale electricity spot market (WESM) had shown the billing months August, September and October 2017 as having solar generation at “unlikely hours.”

He said, for instance, that solar photovoltaic (PV) had dispatched 1.1 megawatts (MW) on Sept. 17, 2017 at 1:00 a.m. Solar power was also dispatched at 0.3 MW on Oct. 19, 2017 at midnight, he said.

“It is apparent that solar PV generation even during night-time intervals is being reported repeatedly over time,” he said, citing a memorandum filed by Meralco before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

FiT-All is a uniform charge billed to all on-grid power users. The collection is largely used to pay renewable energy developers for their biomass, run-of-river hydro, solar and wind projects. The tariff is meant to accelerate the exploration and development of clean energy sources and encourage the use of renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

National Transmission Corp. (TransCo), the state agency that handles FiT-All, filed on Aug. 29, 2017 a tariff of P0.2932 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 2018. It has yet to receive approval from the ERC of its filing to collect P0.2291 per kWh for 2017.

For 2016, TransCo secured final approval for a rate of P0.1830 per kWh on May 9, 2017 or higher than the P0.1025 per kWh it sought at the time of its evaluation on Dec. 22, 2015.

The delay in the approval has caused TransCo’s payables to pile up. As of Nov. 6, 2017, it managed to pay P27.26 billion or 79.4% of its obligations. Its unpaid balance as of the period was P7.06 billion, excluding interest payment of P288.92 million.

In its memorandum filed before the ERC on Nov. 10, 2017, Meralco asked that in assessing the 2017 FiT-All computation, the regulator should use only accurate meter data for actual energy delivered by the renewable energy plants.

Meralco said one of the requirements for eligibility in the FiT program is obtaining a certificate of endorsement from the Department of Energy (DoE). It said TransCo should not use an installed capacity that is different from what was certified by the DoE whether for forecasting FiT payments as part of its annual FiT-All petitions or for determining actual payments to be made to eligible generation companies.

The utility said TransCo’s presentation on Aug. 8, 2017 showed its computation to be higher than the DoE’s list of approved FiT capacity for eligible plants. It traced the discrepancy to  several biomass and run-of-river hydropower plants. It said the 10-MW difference is “significant” as it will contribute to an increase in the FiT-All rate.

Meralco also raised inaccuracies in meter data, which is the basis for payment of FiT rates to FiT-eligible renewable energy developers.

“To illustrate, several solar generation facilities registered output when the sun was not visible, as shown in the [PEMC] dispatch reports containing the ex-post dispatch levels per plant facility and present levels supposedly generated for the hour,” Meralco said.

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Victor V. Saulon

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