The 11th Pasig City Council passed on Monday, June 5, a resolution allowing a tripartite agreement between the local government, the Energy Regulatory Commission of the Philippines (ERC), and the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) to promote and utilize more renewable energy resources.
Proposed Resolution No. 202-2023, authored by Councilor Angelu De Leon, was approved by council on its second and third reading during the regular session of the city council.
It was referred to the Committee on Technology, Communication, and Energy last March 3.
Delivering a report on the committee findings on the resolution, De Leon highlighted the benefits that the agreement, with close partnership with national energy agencies and companies, can provide the city and its constituents.
“Through the agreement, ERC, Meralco, and the local government will work together to help manage electricity costs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and generate economic development by focusing on projects such as the net metering program, and distributing energy resources,” De Leon said.
“Additionally, it will also focus on the expansion of public and private models to support the goal of the national government to achieve 35 percent renewable energy mixed by 2030, and 50 percent by 2040,” she added.
The MOA aims to institutionalize the net metering program, which the councilor explained is a “two-way flow of electricity which enables the consumers to become producers of their own electricity and sell back to Meralco their excess electricity.”
According to the Department of Energy (DOE), net metering is the “first non-fiscal incentive mechanism fully implemented under Republic Act 9513 Renewable Energy (RE) Act of 2008,” where homeowners and establishments can supply their own electricity demands by installing solar photovoltaic (PV) panels up to 100 kilowatts.
There are reportedly 162 net metering customers in Pasig City.
De Leon emphasized that the agreement “serves as an opportunity for the city government to promote the use of alternative resources, specifically solar energy.”
It will also help urge citizens to participate in both generating and monitoring their own electricity consumption.
To address some of the foreseen shortcomings of the program during the committee hearing, she noted that the stakeholders have all agreed to improve the application process for net metering, which was identified as the most common issue among customers.
The process can take up to one month, with an application fee of P1,500 to avail of the certificate of compliance, explained the ERC.
The local government was asked to assist in speeding up the application process by creating more comprehensive guidelines to facilitate a more streamlined process.
Alongside disseminating information on the benefits of net metering, it was also suggested that the use of net metering be extended to the local government itself, as well as condominium unit owners.
“The parties also agreed that a separate data sharing agreement or non-disclosure agreement may be executed to identify specific obligations and liabilities and ensure stricter compliance concerning data sharing and information exchange,” the councilor added.