ERC signals possible extension of GEA-All suspension

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will recommend extending the suspension of the collection of the Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All) beyond June if sufficient funds are available to cover the deferred charges, a top official said Tuesday.

According to ERC Market Operatons Service director Sharon Montañer, the agency will review the suspension of the GEA-All next month.

“By June we will check the balance of the fund. If it’s healthy, why not? Then it can cover the payments for the GEA-All plants. Definitely we will recommend the suspension,” she told reporters on the sidelines of the EJAP Energy Forum in Makati City.

The GEA-All serves as the mechanism used to support payments to eligible renewable energy developers participating in the program.

The suspension applies to all Collection Agents including Distribution Utilities (DUs), Retail Electricity Suppliers (RES), and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

The ERC said the decision was made after the GEA-All Fund was recorded at P466.49 million as of May 5, 2026, which it then deemed as a healthy balance sufficient to cover the projected payment requirements of eligible renewable energy developers.

The ERC earlier suspended the collection of P0.0371 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for all electricity consumers nationwide for the May and June 2026 billing period, in line with efforts to ease the financial burden on Filipinos amid rising inflation and global economic pressures.

This comes as the Philippines, a net importer of fuel, has been in a state of national energy emergency since March due to the conflict in the Middle East.

“The situation in Luzon has already improved. Nakabalik naman na ‘yung major plants from last week na down sila, so hopefully wala naman (mga tuloy na problema), but huwag lang may major na naman na outage,” Montañer said.

(Major plants that were down last week have already returned online, so hopefully there will be no problems, just not a major outage.)

“So for now, if all plants are operating at their maximum capacity, the supply margin is enough,” she added.

The Visayas Grid, however, has been placed under yellow alert status — indicating that the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement — for the past several days. —VAL, GMA News