(Period Covering November 2009 TO April 2010)

I. INTRODUCTION

The 16th Status Report of Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) Implementation highlights major accomplishments for the period November 2009 to April 2010. On the privatization, however, the report included developments as of May 2010. The past six months saw successes in the compliance to the remaining EPIRA set pre-conditions for the implementation of open access and retail competition. Also during this period, major reforms were implemented to improve the governance and operations of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market to include reconstitution of the Board of Directors governing the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation and the conduct of operational, technical, financial and legal audit to identify areas for improvement in the entire WESM operations and the preparation as well to the transfer to an Independent Market Operator. The period likewise marked near completion of the 100 percent barangay electrification target with only 99 barangays unenergized. On the regulatory aspect, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has promulgated new guidelines in the rate approval processes to address concerns on rate approvals.

Challenges in the reform implementation however remain particularly the threat to supply security experienced by the entire country in the light of the El Niño phenomenon that affected power production of hydroelectric plants, particularly in Mindanao and Luzon,coupled by some operational and technical problems in the three major grids. On positive developments, it is during the period when the private generating company, Cebu Energy Development Corporation, commissioned its first unit of the 3 x 82 MW coal-fired power plant in Toledo City, Cebu. The project is expected to augment the power supply problem in Visayas which has been experiencing rotating brown-outs since the last quarter of 2008.

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