ERC, NEA to expedite approval of co-ops’ capex applications

THE Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and the National Electrification Administration (NEA) will team up to expedite the approval of the capital expenditure (capex) projects of the country’s electric cooperatives.

“This has been perfected through the years,” said NEA Administrator Edgardo R. Masongsong in a statement after the holding of a meeting among officials of the two government agencies, referring to the process of preparing and evaluating the capex proposals.

The meeting, which was led by him and ERC Chairperson Agnes T. Devanadera, discussed the adoption of a planning tool called enhanced integrated computerized planning model, or e-ICPM, according to Mr. Masongsong, the administrator of the country’s 121 electric cooperatives (ECs).

Mr. Masongsong said the program, originally called ICPM, had been started by NEA in early 2000s and had undergone several improvements through the years.

Luisa Hernandez, manager of NEA’s rural electrification project planning and development division, said e-ICPM is a homegrown software that helps ECs in drafting their two-year work plan, which includes their capital expenditure projects.

“The e-ICPM is a computer software designed to integrate and harmonize most of the data required from the ECs using MS Office Platform and Visual Basic,” she said.

The program is made up of four components: load forecast, technical, financial, and institutional factors.

ERC Commissioner Josefina Patricia M. Asirit described e-ICPM as a “good tool,” noting that the commission was part of the original group to “ensure regulatory requirements were considered.”

Before the meeting, NEA officials had a meeting with ERC commissioners in March 2017 to discuss the possible partnership to adopt e-ICPM as a tool for evaluating the ECs’ capital expenditure application.

The latest meeting also discussed other concerns, including the harmonization of NEA-ERC definitions and formulas, and the NEA business intelligence Technology system. The meeting was held earlier this month at the NEA office in Diliman, Quezon City. —