San Miguel Corp. said it is within its right to seek reprieve from the Court of Appeals (CA) in its bid to institute a rate hike after the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) declined its petition, suggesting the company is exhausting means to win a rate hike on its supply contract with Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
“Everyone — including Filipino enterprises — is entitled to a fair hearing by an independent, impartial tribunal. We believe the ERC decision, which forces us to continue absorbing billions in losses in the face of a continuing war in Ukraine and escalating global fuel prices, is against its mandate,” San Miguel through unit SMC Global Power said in a statement.
The conglomerate said appealing to the CA is part of its right to due process “among the legal remedies provided to us by the Constitution.”
“We recognize and respect the independence of the judiciary as part of our system of check and balance,” it said.
San Miguel said in its joint petition with Meralco before the ERC they provided the agency with “in-depth computations and projections showing that granting the temporary rate hike would have been the least costly option for power consumers.”
“It would also be beneficial in the long term, as it would preserve the fixed-rate PSAs (power supply agreement),” it said.
“The projections were reviewed and validated by no less than the ERC’s own Regulatory Operations Service. And yet, the ERC Chair and two Commissioners denied the petition, forcing us to continue to absorb losses, and essentially preventing us from exercising our legal options, clearly laid out in the PSAs, to preserve our financial standing. This, despite, two other commissioners delivering strong dissenting opinions,” it added.
