SEN. Alan Peter Cayetano wants a temporary halt in bidding for an additional 600 MW of electricity by Manila Electric Company (Meralco) to review whether the terms of reference (TOR) for its competitive selection process (CSP) were fair.
Cayetano made the suggestion in the wake of questions over the terms of reference set by Meralco for its CSP that the senator said appeared to be tailor-fit for the utility’s favored suppliers.
This prompted Cayetano to urge the Energy Regulatory Commission to order the suspension of Meralco’s CSP for 600 MW.
During the recent hearing of the Senate committees on energy and committee and ways and means, Cayetano asked the panel officials to look into Meralco’s bid.
Cayetano said there is a pressing need to address the lingering issue of high cost of power affecting both investors and consumers.
“This is not only about the high cost of power but it’s also about energy security,” he added.
According to the senator, he found a phrase in Meralco’s TOR to be discriminatory because it effectively disqualified Malampaya-fueled power plants. He was referring to the phrase “if the plant is more than 10 years old” as indicating that older power plants were automatically disqualified from taking part in the CSP.
Meralco first vice president Ronaldo Valles initially denied that the TOR stipulated this condition, but later admitted it when pressed by Cayetano.
“The point I am driving through is because of that simple decision, you disqualified those plants using Malampaya gas, is that right? That’s the net effect of that.” Cayetano said.
“I am not an expert here but it doesn’t really take an expert to see that Meralco seems to have favored someone by just the TOR,” he added.
