WESM-Visayas to operate before yearend

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) power core group chairman Carlos Co said yesterday that the business sector is anticipating this move from DOE saying that “at least they have given us the timeline already.”

Co said the problem with the past DOE leadership was that despite persistent calls for the commercial operation of WESM-Visayas, the business sector was left hanging with no specific timetable as to when the operation will be finally realized.

DOE secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras vowed to have the WESM-Visayas go online before the end of this year, or even earlier.

According to Co, the business sector hopes that the WESM operation will be implemented “the earlier, the better.”

Almendras said in an interview that he already had instructed the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMC) to prioritize the WESM-Visayas and that commercial operations shall be started before the year ends.

Almendras, the lone Cebuano in the cabinet now heading the DOE, said that in his earlier discussion with the PEMC, the agency has agreed to make the WESM-Visayas a priority.

The order is “as-soon-as-possible”, he said although there are still problems that have to be resolved in getting the facility to work, such as the readiness of independent power producers (IPP) to participate in the spot market.

Almendras hopes that the commercial operation of WESM-Visayas will happen before the last quarter of this year.

Co believes that once the WESM declare operation here, IPPs will be encouraged to participate as it will open up opportunities for IPP considering the wider market range.

Although, the opening of the WESM here will not promise a total solution of the power shortage in Cebu, Co said this will curtail the number of “power interruptions” in the province, as more power supply will be available in the market once WESM is there.

Almendras said that one of the concerns being worked out by PEMC now is the readiness of the IPP to trade their power supply in the spot market.

The secretary said that there are still few IPPs that have not yet declared their interest to trade their power supply in the spot market.

Early this month, members of the Chambers of Commerce in the Visayas drafted a resolution emphasizing the immediate need of the WESM operations here.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI-Visayas) vice president Francis O. Monera said that the business sector in the region is hopeful that the new government will see the need to fix and enhance the power supply, which already affected majority of businesses in the Visayas.

WESM’s long anticipated operation in the Visayas, was one of the issues tackled during the recently concluded Visayas Area Business Conference held in Cebu, which was attended by over 200 business leaders in the Visayas.

East Asia Utilities general manager Roger Lim said that Cebu could have avoided the power shortage problem if the Cebu-Negros-Panay Grid capacity is being maximized, and the WESM-Visayas had been allowed to commercially operate.

DoE has deferred WESM operations in the Visayas due to inadequate capacity in both power generation and transmission facilities, as revealed in a study conducted by consultancy firm Intelligent Energy Systems (IES).

The establishment of WESM is expected to create a more robust energy industry by encouraging competition and efficiency among industry players.

The Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) of 2001 mandated the establishment of the electricity spot market to set the price of electricity thru market forces, free from the restrictions of regulation.