STATEMENT: SC decision portends lower rates for electricity ratepayers
10 May 2019 -- The cloud of uncertainty that hovered over stakeholders in the power sector was lifted by the Supreme Court (SC) decision on the competitive procurement of power supply by distribution utilities, mainly for residential ratepayers, last May 3. The aims and expected results of that decision are to be lauded. If the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) hew to the spirit of the court’s decision well, ratepayers can expect lower rates than will otherwise be, and would have been, the case. But there are implementation challenges that have to be addressed. Prior [...]
ICSC on ANC: The economic benefits of transitioning from coal to renewable energy
(Posted on Early Edition on ANC, April 16, 2019) ICSC senior policy advisor Atty. Pete Maniego tells Michelle Ong about the economic benefits of transitioning from coal to renewable energy and from centralized to distributed generation systems in today's Early Edition on ANC.
ICSC hails bicam approval of coal tax hike
REACTIVE MANILA, 12 December 2017 — The bicameral conference committee agreed yesterday to increase the coal excise tax under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill, from its current rate of ten pesos (P10) per metric ton to P50 up to P150 per metric ton over the next three years. Reacting to the development, Red Constantino, executive director of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, said: “The coal tax hike stands as a solid rebuke to the coal industry despite its best efforts to maintain their virtually-tax-free status for four decades. Once signed into law, this bicam [...]
Policy group backs Senate’s P0.10/kg coal tax hike proposal for TRAIN
MANILA, 5 December 2017 – The Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) today called on Congress to adopt the former’s proposed coal tax hike of P0.10 per kilogram in the bicameral conference committee for the tax reform bill. The Senate and House of Representatives are expected to tackle today the increase in the excise tax on coal, which for 40 years has been pegged at P0.01/kg. The Senate version of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill calls for the tax to gradually increase to P0.10/kg in 2018, P0.20/kg in 2019, and P0.30/kg in 2020. However, coal [...]
$21B worth of coal plants in the Philippines face imminent stranding – report
PRESS RELEASE MANILA, 12 October 2017 – The Philippine’s financial sector is massively exposed to the imminent stranding of proposed coal plants in the country, which amount to over 10,000 megawatts or US$21 billion (PHP1.05 trillion at PHP50 to US$1), according to a report released today by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC). “Prudent reform is required to level the playing field in the energy sector and to hold investors accountable for their own investment errors. The Philippines is heavily but needlessly over-dependent on coal, which is a [...]