Date: September 17, 2009
Time: 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM
Venue: JV Room 2-5, 4th floor, AIM Conference Center Manila, Makati City
Performance Based Regulation in the Power Sector
On 17 September 2009, the AIM Policy Center, in partnership with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), hosted the first workshop on the Performance Based Regulation (PBR) in the Power Sector. In 2005, the ERC issued the guidelines for the implementation of the PBR for all private distribution utilities, replacing the old Return on Rate Base (RORB) methodology. The change is mandated by Section 43 of the Republic Act No. 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), which calls for the adoption of an internationally-accepted rate-setting methodology that shall promote efficiency of the utilities, as well as achieve the overall goal of the EPIRA to provide reliable, secure and affordable supply of electric power.
The event welcomed judges and lawyers from the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA), the Office of the Court Administrator, and judges from the Regional Trial Courts of Makati and Mandaluyong. The workshop aimed to provide the members of the legal community with the pertinent knowledge on the PBR system that will help them make just and well-informed decisions, should legal constraints or obstacles arise in the future.
The discussion on the PBR system was led by ERC Commissioner Rauf A. Tan. As a Certified Public Accountant, Commissioner Tan has been in the forefront in the design and implementation of the PBR system for the transmission and distribution utilities. In his presentation, Commissioner Tan stressed the importance of employing a new ratemaking methodology that was in line with the mandate of EPIRA. He outlined the differences between the RORB and PBR schemes and discussed the ERC’s current process of approving rates under the new PBR methodology.
Responses to Commissioner Tan’s presentation were provided by recently retired Justice Adolfo S. Azcuna, chancellor of PHILJA, Honorable Selma P. Alaras, presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court Branch 62 in Makati City, on behalf of Court Administrator Jose A. Perez; and Prof. Ma. Lourdes Sereno, Executive Director of the AIM Policy Center.
