MANILA, Philippines – PINATAWAN ng Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) ng P15.8-million penalty ang National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) para sa pagkaantala na makompleto ang 34 power transmission projects.
Sinabi ni ERC Chair Monalisa Dimalanta sa isinagawang pagdinig ng House Committee on Legislative Franchises, araw ng Lunes na 34 mula sa 37 capital expenditure (capex) projects na iniimbestigahan, 34 ang natuklasan na mayroong ‘unjustified delays.’
“We investigated 37 delayed projects. As required by due process, we required the NGCP to submit their explanation. Out of the 37 projects, we found that there were unjustified delays for 34 projects,” ayon kay Dimalanta sabay sabing “So it was a fine of total P15.8 million for 34 projects with unjustified delays.”
Ipinaliwanag pa ni Dimalanta na ang multa ay mula P100,000 para sa unang dalawang paglabag hanggang P50,000 para sa mga kasunod pa, gaya ng idinidikta ng regulatory caps.
Tanggap din ni Dimalanta na ang multa ay ‘capped and may not fully reflect the impact of the delays.’
“Since we realized that the costs of these penalties couldn’t really be compared to the cost of the delays, we are bound by the schedule of fines and penalties,” aniya pa rin.
Winika pa ni Dimalanta na nagbayad na ng multa ang NGCP subalit gumawa ng “under protest,” sinasabi nito na ang korporasyon ay nagsasaliksik ng legal remedies.
Sa kabilang dako, tinukoy naman ni NGCP spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza ang timeline misalignments bilang dahilan para magsaliksik ng legal options ng grid operator.
“There are several projects that are subject of the ERC’s latest penalty order. The reason we are exploring our options is because we have seen also that there are some really misalignment on timelines,” ang sinabi ni Alabanza.
Samantala, nakatakda namang ipalabas ng ERC ang pinal na determinasyon para sa fourth regulatory period (2016 to 2022) sa January 2025.
“We have completed all the evaluations. As per our rules, we are required to publish the draft final determination for the reset for 2016 to 2022, and we have done so. Comments were submitted by the stakeholders, including NGCP, and we expect to issue the final determination by January 2025,”ang sinabi ni Dimalanta.
Nagpahiwatig naman ito ng posibleng pagtaas sa pangwakas na pagpapasya sanhi ng pagbabago sa regulatory approaches. Kris Jose
