DOE, ERC, PCC forge 3-way partnership in probing into electric power industry

The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) has completed a three-way partnership in conducting a coordinated investigation into the electric power industry.

The anti-trust watchdog on Monday said it has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) completing the three-way partnership that involves the Department of Energy (DOE). 

“Our MOA with ERC exhibits how the competition agency and sector regulators play complementary roles in promoting competition in the sector while fulfilling their respective mandates,” PCC Chair Arsenio Balisacan said.

“Our partnership allows for the sharing of information and coordination of enforcement actions toward a more robust competition landscape in the energy sector,” he added.

The PCC and the DOE signed a similar agreement in June, covering the mechanisms that will allow the antitrust watchdog and the department to count on information sharing, investigation support, technical audits, joint task forces, and continued capacity-building and consultations.

The PCC-ERC partnership allows for conducting joint fact-finding inquiries pertaining to competition matters in the industry.

Consultations with institutions or firms such as the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, and generation companies have also be forged in obtaining relevant information.

According to the commission, a DOE-ERC-PCC tripartite task force has been formed ahead of the agreement to coordinate inquiries into allegations of collusion or abuse of dominant position in the power industry.

“The PCC and ERC recognize the merit of adopting a coordinated approach toward the shared goal of promoting competition in the power industry,” Balisacan said.

“We are confident our combined expertise and investigative capacities will lead to a stronger push for competition enforcement in this critical sector,” he added. —VDS, GMA News