Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian. Photo courtesy of Senate of the Philippines.
Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian called for expanding the Energy Regulatory Commission’s authority to audit not only electricity distribution charges but also pass-through costs reflected in consumers’ power bills.
Speaking during a Senate energy committee hearing, Gatchalian said stronger oversight was needed to ensure consumers were not paying excessive charges passed on by power companies.
He argued that businesses naturally seek to maximize profits, making it the regulator’s responsibility to determine whether the costs charged to consumers are reasonable.
ERC Chairperson Saturnino Juan acknowledged that the agency had not comprehensively reviewed fuel-related pass-through charges and said new audit procedures were needed to verify whether the amounts being collected were appropriate.
Gatchalian said the absence of such authority left regulators without a clear picture of the charges ultimately shouldered by electricity consumers.
Sen. Erwin Tulfo, who chairs the energy panel, also questioned the ERC over what he described as the lack of safeguards against possible overcharging.
Tulfo said the agency could have done more to alert the public about rising electricity costs even without broader regulatory powers.
Juan declined to describe the charges as abusive, saying the ERC had no basis to make that conclusion under its current mandate.