In a continued effort to broaden access to the Competitive Retail Electricity Market (CREM), the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) is seeking to fast-track the lowering of the threshold for retail competition to allow more end-users to benefit from Retail Competition and Open Access (RCOA).

ERC Chairperson Francis Saturnino Juan stated that this shift could happen sooner than the original 2027 target. “We already have a proposed resolution for lowering [the threshold] to 100 kilowatts (kW),’ he told the Manila Bulletin. “It might happen as early as this year.”

The ERC has posted a public notice inviting relevant stakeholders to comment on the draft omnibus rules for customer choice programs. This resolution proposes lowering the threshold from the current 500 kW, potentially expanding access to smaller consumers, including households.

This is not the first adjustment by the ERC; the eligibility threshold was previously lowered from 750 kilowatt to 500 kW in February 2021.

Before public consultation begins, Juan noted that certain issues still need to be addressed to allow consumers with lower power demand to participate in RCOA.

“So far, we have identified issues such as the cost of meters to be used by the switching customers, the possible stranded contracted capacities of the DUs (distribution utilities) for the supply to their captive markets, among others,” he said.

According to former chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta, the “power-to-choose” has been a long-standing goal of the ERC, which has advocated for households to have the freedom to select their own electricity providers.

Once implemented, RCOA would enable end-users to choose their own power suppliers and negotiate rates that suit their preferences, making them independent from the distribution utility currently serving their area.