A lawmaker yesterday moved to amend or repeal the Electric Power Industry Reform Act saying the law has not been an effective solution to the problems besetting the power industry.

Rep. Edgardo Rama Masongsong (Party-list, 1-CARE) said in a press release from Congress, that it is the best time to amend, if not repeal, the failed EPIRA because it has just paved the way for the oligopolistic business-oriented character of the power industry.

Masongsong said it is inherent on Congress to urgently look into the EPIRA as a whole, propose revisions and amendments to address the inherent problems of the power industry, the press release said.

"We have to be realistic in our assessments and pragmatic in our decisions because in the end it is the electric consumers who suffer," he said.

Masongsong also expressed disappointment over the blaming of Secretary Jericho Carlos Petilla of the Department of Energy and Energy Regulatory Commission Chairperson Zenaida Ducut or any officer or player in the power industry, the press release said.

Masongsong said the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market had been proven inefficient since its inception in 2006, and is one of the most pressing concerns that need to be addressed.

He said the issue of collusion among power producers in the WESM also resurfaced just before Christmas last year when Meralco announced another electricity price increase in the amount of P4.15/kWh, the highest increase so far.

He said Meralco, the largest power distributor in the country was quick to declare that they do not benefit from the increase and that the rate hike was brought about by the scheduled preventive maintenance of the Malampaya natural gas line, creating a deficit of about 2,700 MW out of its customers' 6,000 MW average demand.

He also said that the timing of the Malampaya shutdown from November 11 to December 11, 2013 coincided with the inexplicable outages of major power plants in Luzon, prompting Meralco to get more electricity from the WESM at much higher rates, the release added.*

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