THE Senate yesterday approved a bill extending the corporate life of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) Corporation for five years from the expiration of its original term on June 26, 2026.
With a vote of 20 affirmative, zero negative, and no abstentions, Senate Bill. No. 2837 was passed on third and final reading.
The bill seeks to amend Section 50 of RA 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001 which created the PSALM to restructure the power sector previously monopolized by the National Power Corporation (NPC).
PSALM was entrusted to formulate and implement a privatization plan for the government’s energy assets previously held by the NPC.
It took over the ownership of all existing NPC generation assets, liabilities, Independent Power Producers (IPPs) contracts, real estate, and all other disposable assets.
It was also mandated to manage the orderly sale, disposition, and privatization of the assets to reduce financial obligations and stranded contract costs.
“PSALM’s wealth of experience and knowledge gained throughout its 22 years of existence serves to operationalize the policies and provisions enshrined in the EPIRA,” said Sen. Mark Villar in his sponsorship speech.
Villar said that as of December 2023, PSALM reduced its financial obligations by 76 percent or from P1.2 trillion to P294 billion. PSALM also remitted around P26 billion as dividends to the Bureau of Treasury.
“PSALM is at the crucial point where the wheel has to continue spinning for the Corporation to fully achieve its mandate contemplated under EPIRA,” Villar said, adding that non-renewal of its corporate life would saddle the government with a projected deficit of P275 billion.
“Should it be untimely abolished, the national government would have to absorb all of PSALM’s outstanding financial obligations,” he added.