By Junex Doronio
MANILA – Rep. Dan Fernandez strongly criticized the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) on Monday (23 December 2024) during a House Committee on Legislative Franchises hearing for passing the cost of unfinished capital expenditure (CAPEX) projects onto Filipino power consumers.
Fernandez called the practice unfair and harmful to the public, urging immediate reforms.
“It’s like the NGCP projects that are still under construction—unused, uncommissioned, and not yet efficient—are already being charged to the people,” Fernandez said, highlighting the injustice of making consumers pay for incomplete projects.
Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta supported Fernandez’s concerns, explaining that the ERC’s minority position only allows completed and commissioned projects to be included in the Regulatory Asset Base (RAB).
“As far as the minority is concerned, only the CAPEX amounts that resulted in actual assets can be considered. You can’t book a project as an actual asset unless it’s fully completed,” she said.
However, Dimalanta also revealed that the ERC majority approved including CAPEX based on an “as spent” approach, a decision Fernandez found unacceptable.
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