Consumers could see lower electricity bills within a year as the Department of Energy (DOE) moves to reduce system loss charges on monthly power bills, with Energy Secretary Sharon Garin saying the agency aims to implement reforms before the next State of the Nation Address (SONA).

“It’s not going to be easy. We can issue policies, but the implementation on the distribution utility (DU) side will take time,” Garin told a press briefing on Tuesday, July 28, noting that power providers will need to make various changes to their systems before the relief reaches consumers.

Garin added that the DOE will meet with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and National Electrification Administration (NEA) to discuss measures to ensure that the changes would not affect other electricity charges.

DOE Undersecretary Mario Marasigan said that removing system loss charges from consumers’ electricity bills could result in savings of around five to 10 percent.

Garin explained that system loss has two components: technical losses, which stem from grid infrastructure and power equipment, and non-technical losses, which result from pilferage and electricity theft. However, addressing non-technical losses may fall on DUs and ECs, which manage anti-pilferage operations within their franchise areas.

Meanwhile, Marasigan explained that system loss recovery caps vary by utility type: private DUs are capped at 6.5 percent, on-grid ECs at 8.5 percent, and off-grid utilities at more than 10 percent.

“Within those thresholds, consumers pay. But beyond that, it should be the ECs or DUs that pay for it,” he said.

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) earlier said that technical power losses cannot be eliminated and that, as the country’s largest power distributor, reforms should still consider the financial position of DUs to enable them to continue improving their infrastructure and services.