ERC orders MERALCO to expedite action on customers’ refund
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) recently ordered MERALCO to implement the Second Phase of Refund starting September 2003, which shall be completed on or before December 31. 2003. The refund will benefit some 2.2 million registered customers of Meralco consuming 101 kWh up to 300 kWh covering the period February 1994 to May 2003.
ERC also ordered MERALCO to submit the actual amount involved in the entire refund implementation for the Commission’s confirmation, in the light of varying unconfirmed figures coming out in the newspapers.
The first phase, which benefited around 2 million residential customers consuming 100 kWh or less, shall be fully accomplished by August 2003. ERC Chairman Manuel R. Sanchez said that the mechanics of refund for the second phase will basically be the same as the first phase.
For Phases III and IV involving high consumption customers, ERC required MERALCO to submit its proposed implementation procedure, together with the total amounts of refund involved in each phase.
In the ERC Order, the Commission denied MERALCO’s request to exclude the collections under the One Day Power Sales (ODPS) Program from the refund/credit implementation coverage, but approved the utility’s request for the exclusion of violation of contract (VOC) recoveries.
The implementation of the refund was a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling that income taxes should not form part of the utility’s operating expenses. The Court’s decision resulted in the reduction of MERALCO’s basic rate by P0.167 per kWh effective February 1994.
Noting that some MERALCO customers were inconvenienced during the initial phase of refund, Chairman Sanchez said that he has already ordered Meralco to review and improve its procedures of implementing the refund scheme.
In response to this call, MERALCO shall adjust the servicing hours of its Refund Centers which shall be kept open to adequately accommodate the volume of customers’ claims.
PDF copy of OrderJuly 23, 2003