As important as the necessity to regulate the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) industry in the country is the need to ensure the well-being of more than eight million Filipino households depending on LPG for their daily cooking needs, Senator Win Gatchalian said.
After two years since the Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop (EVOSS) was signed into law, Senator Win Gatchalian lauded the move of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) to comply with the provisions of the law in pursuing energy development projects.
Senator Win Gatchalian has filed a resolution seeking an inquiry into the government’s energy transition plan following the Department of Energy’s (DOE) move last year banning new coal power plants to accelerate the country’s shift to cleaner energy.
A bill streamlining existing laws and regulating the domestic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) industry to ensure consumer welfare against the rampant industry malpractices and provide consumer choice has been approved on third and final reading in the Senate, Senator Win Gatchalian said.
Senator Win Gatchalian is again asking power distributors to take notice of pleas for leniency on the disconnection of power supply of customers who still cannot afford to pay their unsettled electricity bills in full.
Senator Win Gatchalian urged the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and distribution utilities (DUs), such as Meralco, to heed the call of the public to further extend the ‘no disconnection’ policy for low-income consumers at least until the end of the government-imposed General Community Quarantine (GCQ).
Senator Win Gatchalian said low-income households can look forward to a continued subsidy in their electricity consumption bills in the next 10 years.
Senator Win Gatchalian said a refund should be in order if it will be proven that a violation has been committed by the Visayan Electric Company (VECO) because of its high cost of electricity.
Senator Win Gatchalian has set in motion the Senate deliberations on a measure that will further develop the natural gas industry, providing for a replacement of the Malampaya deep water gas-to-power project even before its supply runs out and avert possible rotational brownouts beginning 2022.
