ERC to notify public of actions, decisions for greater transparency

Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairperson and CEO Monalisa C. Dimalanta | PHOTO: Official Facebook page of ERC / Energy Regulatory Commission

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will apprise the public of the actions and decisions made by the regulatory agency within the week, calling it a “huge step” in fostering greater trust in the public.

“We are aiming for notices to be issued within the week of the Commission meeting,” ERC chair Monalisa Dimalanta said in a message on Friday.

The ERC already posted the first Notice of Commission Action on its website outlining different complaints or requests filed before them and the updates or resolutions issued by the regulatory body on such matters.

These include the adjustment of the timeline for power distributor Manila Electric Co.’s rate reset process involving its spending for the years July 2022 to June 2026 and approval of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines’ Laguindingan substation project to enhance power grid reliability in Mindanao.

READ: ERC approves NGCP’s P2.34-B transmission project in Misamis Oriental

In a statement, the ERC said it implemented a policy of “regularly and immediately” informing the public of the actions undertaken by the regulator after completing efforts to conduct open commission meetings soon.

“For this first one, we still had to finalize the format so it took some time but we hope to issue regularly moving forward,” she said.

Dimalanta said this practice is similar to those adopted by regulatory agencies and collegial bodies in other jurisdictions to shorten the timeframe between the day the ERC votes on the matter and the day of releasing the official written decision.

READ: ERC approves P38-billion transmission projects

“We still aim to shorten the gaps between those two milestones by expanding our personnel to cope with the workload,” she added.

The ERC chief also said this measure is a “huge step” in promoting greater transparency and public trust in regulating the energy sector, adding it is aligned with the Constitutional right of the public to access records on matters of public concern.

Created under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act, the ERC is an independent quasi-judicial body mandated to regulate the energy sector to, among others, promote competition, encourage market development, protect consumers’ welfare, and penalize abuse of market power.