The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on Thursday ordered power industry stakeholders in areas under a state of calamity following the onslaught of severe tropical storm Kristine to suspend disconnections and implement flexible bill payment schemes by December to ease the burden on affected consumers.

In an advisory to its regulated entities, the ERC said the order is in line with President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s directive to study the implementation of a moratorium on power outages and payment collections after the widespread devastation caused by Kristine.

The energy industry regulator has directed all distribution utilities (DUs) in distressed areas to “suspend power line disconnections of residential and non-residential customers in the captive market(s) with a monthly electricity consumption that not exceed 200 kilowatt-hours (kWh), for non-payment of electricity bills for the billing period from October 2024 to December 2024.”

Furthermore, the ERC said DUs in affected areas are directed “to offer flexible payment options to help ease the financial burden on consumers as they work to recover from the effects of STS Kristine.”

The regulator said DUs will implement a payment scheme where captive consumers, whose monthly consumption does not exceed 200 kWh in the billing periods from October to December 2024, “will be allowed to pay these monthly bills in staggered for a period of at least six months from the issue of the account statement for each invoice.”

The ERC said that DUs can offer alternative payment terms that are mutually agreeable to both DUs and consumers whose consumption exceeds 200 kWh.

“Consumers are encouraged to contact their respective DUs to inquire about alternative payment options available or to request special terms for paying outstanding bills,” it said.

There are a total of 158 areas declared under a state of calamity after Kristine, with the Bicol Region having the most cities and municipalities placed under a state of calamity at 78.

Calabarzon ranked second with 63 cities and municipalities under a state of calamity.

In Eastern Visayas, 13 areas are under a state of calamity, while one area each in Ilocos Region, SOCCSKCARGEN, Cordillera Administrative Region and the National Capital Region has been placed under a state of calamity.

The ERC said the power generators, Power Sector Asset and Liability Management Corporation (PSALM), National Power Corporation (NPC), National Transmission Corporation (TransCo), National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), Independent Power Producers (IPP ), the Independent Power Producer Administrators (IPPA) and the Market Operator (MO) “will extend the same payment scheme to the affected DUs only to the extent of the latter’s receipts from the affected consumers”.

“Thus, the concerned DUs will separate the payments from the affected consumers to determine the amounts to be paid on a staggered basis similar to the respective generators, PSALM, NPC, TRANSCO, NGCP, IPP, IPPA and MO. The use of the prompt payment discount (PPD) will continue to be in accordance with the parties’ approved supply contract,” the statement said. —KBK, GMA Integrated News