Senator Grace Poe said power firms granted with a franchise and permits carry the colossal task of providing reliable electricity at all times.
“Reliability is a big commitment in the provision of public service. Kailangan ay maaasahan ka ng mga tao sa lahat ng oras (People rely on you all the time), whatever the circumstances are,” Poe said.
She stressed this on Wednesday’s (May 17) hearing of the Senate committee on energy, which tackled among others, her resolution on the Panay Island power situation.
"Thus, it should be the responsibility of our public service providers to ensure that proper measures are in place and upgrades are implemented to continuously improve the reliability of the system," she added.
The chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Services pointed out that Republic Act 9511 grants National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) a franchise with the commitment to support safe and reliable operation of the transmission system in the Philippines
"The weight of its responsibility is heaviest being the sole operator – ang tanging inaasahan natin. Kung hindi gumagana, kung nasira, wala tayong kuryente (the one one we can count on. If it doesn't work, if it fails, then we have no electricity)," she said.
Poe reiterated that a franchise is a privilege especially if it involves a natural monopoly given to a sole company.
"I would just like to remind you, we’re not making a unilateral conclusion here without further studies, but RA 9511 is clear that in a franchise, we may amend, we may alter and we may repeal your franchise if it is for the common good," Poe added.
Poe stressed that authorities should have acted quickly to remedy the situation to spare the people in Occidental Mindoro of the blackouts.
"Meron naman palang paraan para magkaroon ng suplay ng power (there is a way to have power supply). provisional authority lang ang kailangan (what is needed is provisional authority). Dapat nape-predict na ng Department of Energy(DOE) ang kakulangan, paandarin ang iba, dapat matagal nang ginawa (DOE could have predicted this shortage, start other power plants which should have been done)” Poe said.
"Permit lang pala ang problema, dapat nagawan na ng paraan (The solution to the problem is permit. This should have been done),” she added.
Poe said there is a need to determine the cause of the grid disturbances in the Panay Island and who should be held responsible -- NGCP or local distribution utility Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO).
Poe also took note of the drawn-out audit of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on NGCP, which began in 2019 and is still being evaluated by the commission.