CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — The Court of Appeals has junked the order of the Energy Regulatory Commission directing the San Fernando Electric Light and Power Co. Inc. to refund a total of P2.42 billion to its customers.
In its decision dated Nov. 23, 2023, the CA’s Special 17th Division said the ERC’s order to refund the P654,397,381 in disallowed charges and P1,769,924,493 in excess of the allowed power generation rates from 2014 to 2022 violated Sfelapco’s right to due process.
“Clearly, these amounts were arbitrarily imposed against petitioner without giving it the opportunity to be heard,” the CA decision read.
Referencing the Electric Power Industry Act of 2001, it said: “Plainly, nowhere was it stated in Section 46 of Republic Act No. 9136 or the Guidelines to Govern the Imposition of Administrative Sanctions in the Form of Fines and Penalties Pursuant to Section 46 of Republic Act No. 9136 that refund is a consequence of an administrative liability in addition to fines and penalties.”
While the CA conceded that quasi-judicial entities like the ERC may be “free from the rigidity of certain procedural requirements,” they could not entirely disregard the “fundamental and essential requirements” of due process.
Sfelapco was not accorded “a fair and reasonable opportunity to explain or defend itself,” the court noted.
Power distribution company Aboitiz Power Renewable, Inc. (APRI) merely passed on to Sfelapco the distribution charges, and the propriety and the basis of refund and its computation “have not been subjected to a proper proceeding where petitioner (Sfelapco) could have been given the opportunity to present its side,” it furthered.
Even as the CA set aside the ERC decision on the P2,424,321,874 refund, it upheld the ERC’s imposition of P21,600,000 administrative fine on Sfelapco for collecting generation charges from consumers during the period without the commission’s approval.
In June last year, the ERC ordered Sfelapco to refund an additional P1.76 billion to its consumers. This, in response to Sfelapco’s motion for reconsideration on the ERC’s March 3 decision ordering the power distribution company to return the more than P654 million it charged its customers and pay the penalty.
Media reports said the ERC has already filed a motion for reconsideration with the CA through the Office of the Solicitor General for the reversal of the CA decision. Punto News Team/Contributed photo
