FIT-All collections shortfall slashed to P4.5 billion

By Myrna M. Velasco – June 8, 2018, 10:00 PM
from Manila Bulletin

The shortfall in collections of the feed-in-tariff allowance (FIT-All) from ratepayers will be cut to P4.5 billion this year from previously at roughly P8.0 billion – that was following the P0.0733 per kilowatt hour (kWh) increase in this charge as recently approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

“Projected total collection due to the adjusted FIT-All is P17 billion,” National Transmission Corporation (TransCo) President Melvin A. Matibag has noted.

TransCo is the duly designated administrator of the FIT Fund, which from its collection of FIT-All from consumers, it will in turn pay the renewable energy (RE) developers on their FIT incentive billings.

With the FIT-All charge now at the level of P0.2563 per kWh, Matibag reiterated that “collection shortfall will be down to around P4.5 billion from P7.0 billion plus.”

He added that the company is now preparing their FIT-All adjustment filing based on calculated pass-on for calendar year 2019, and they are eyeing to lodge the new application with the ERC by July this year.

Distribution utilities, like the Manila Electric Company (Meralco), have started passing on the higher FIT-All charges in this billing month.

In the last warranted adjustment, TransCo used the 36-month load weighted average price (LWAP) for the August 2013 to August 2016 of P4.9331 per kWh and P3.5409 per kWh in Luzon and Visayas, respectively; and applicable to all technologies.

For Mindanao, it had taken cue from the weighted average generation cost on supply procured by distribution utilities that have been taken as sample in the calculation of the cost recovery rate.

Beyond the usual shortfall in collections, additional costs being batted for to be recouped in the FIT-All filing are interest charges that have been accruing due to delay in the adjustment of the RE subsidy tariff.