ERC Sets Rules On ‘Green Energy Procurement' Option Of Consumers

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has laid down the rules that will delineate the qualification of consumers that can avail of the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP) or those that can secure or contract for electricity supply from renewable energy (RE) suppliers.

- Myrna M. Velasco

As the regulatory body has decreed, the end-users who may qualify under GEOP shall be those that have monthly average peak demand of 100 kilowatts (kW) and higher as reckoned from the past 12 months; and the other set will be the entities whose operation has been less than 12 months from the effectivity of the GEOP rules.

ERC Chairperson Agnes T. Devanadera explained that the GEOP is a mechanism that “empowers electricity consumers by giving them the option to choose renewable energy as their source of electricity,” and such choice will not just bring socioeconomic benefits for them, but will also be highly beneficial in the world’s quest for solutions to climate change risks.

The chief power industry regulator added that “in the long run, the GEOP will help us to achieve energy independence as it reduces our dependence on imported energy sources.”