Meralco needs to secure permits for operating Quezon plant — ERC

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) should secure its permits before it can be allowed to operate its coal-fired power plant in Quezon, the Energy Regulatory Commission said.

Generation companies seeking approval of the issuance of a certificate of compliance (COC) must first comply with all the necessary documents and permits.

The COC, which has a term of five years, is necessary before any generation company can commence commercial operations.

“The EPIRA has specified the necessary clearances that generation companies (gencos) must secure prior to the ERC’s issuance of COCs. Unless all the documentary requirements have been fully complied with, only then we can issue the corresponding COC”, ERC chairperson and chief executive officer Agnes Devanadera said.

The Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) mandates new generation companies to secure a certificate of compliance from the ERC before its commercial operations, provided that the gencos have also obtained the necessary health, safety and environmental clearances from the appropriate government agencies.

Under the revised rules for the issuance of COCs issued by the ERC, the commission has 60-calendar days to act on applications for COCs reckoned from the date of complete submission of the required information, including the completion of the ERC’s technical inspection of the power plant.

In the case of Meralco Powergen Corp.’s (MGen) 455-MW San Buenaventura Power Ltd. Co. (SBPL) power plant in Mauban, Quezon, the company has yet to complete and secure the necessary permits before the ERC can fully evaluate the propriety of the grant of the COC.

“We welcome the entry of new power plants as these will augment and ensure the sustainability of power supply. However, we will not allow the stakeholders to breach the law and the rules that we have promulgated as they were designed to ensure that the consuming public’s interest is not compromised,” Devanadera said.

However, MGen said it has already complied with all the requirements needed to proceed to commercial operations.

SBPL’s capacity would be sold to Meralco under a 20-year power supply agreement (PSAs) approved by ERC in 2015.