ERC sees wider power choice driving RE

Wider electricity choices for businesses and other consumers could help drive the next wave of renewable energy investments in the country by creating stronger demand for clean power, according to Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairperson and CEO Francis Saturnino Juan.

Speaking at the ASEAN Energy Business Meeting on Tuesday, Juan said expanding the competitive electricity market and programs that allow consumers to directly choose renewable energy could provide developers with committed buyers, improving the viability of new renewable projects.

Since June, the threshold for Retail Competition and Open Access (RCOA) has been lowered to 100 kilowatts (kW) from 500 kW, extending electricity supplier choice to more businesses, including mid-sized offices, hotels and small manufacturers.

“That is an opportunity. It is also a responsibility. Expanding eligibility is only the first step,” Juan said. “Consumers need clear information and understandable rules,” he added.

The development widens the pool of electricity users that can participate in the competitive retail market, potentially creating more opportunities for renewable energy suppliers to secure customers outside the traditional captive market.

Juan said the ERC is pursuing reforms covering the Green Energy Option Program (GEOP), wider competitive retail participation, the Renewable Energy Market and more proactive market monitoring.

GEOP allows qualified consumers, including companies with net-zero commitments, to source certified renewable electricity even while remaining within the captive market. Renewable energy certificates are used to track the green attributes of the electricity supplied.

For renewable energy developers, Juan said growing consumer demand could provide greater certainty that new capacity will have buyers.

“That matters for investors. Consumer demand tells the market that renewable supply has committed buyers. It is the demand-side anchor that makes new renewable investment bankable,” Juan said.

However, he cautioned that simply allowing more consumers to participate would not necessarily translate into greater market activity.

The shift toward greater consumer choice comes as the country’s electricity system undergoes broader changes to accommodate more renewable generation, energy storage and distributed energy resources.

Juan pointed out that consumers are becoming a more active part of the power system, with households, factories, data centers, prosumers and storage owners expected to play a larger role in the future grid.

Net metering and demand response are already moving consumers from passive electricity users into active market participants, while the ERC is working to simplify interconnection through shorter proposed processing timelines and digital submissions.

“Distributed energy is no longer a future concept. It is already part of the Philippine electricity landscape,” Juan said. “Our task is to make participation easier without compromising safety, reliability, or fairness.”