ABOUT NASECORE
National Association
of Electricity
Consumers for
Reforms, Inc.
NASECORE was formally organized on 24 January 1998 during a Consumers Congress held in Cebu City. It was incorporated on 12 October 1998 at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Its membership includes, at the institutional level, civic organizations, cause-oriented groups and consumer associations. Individual consumer advocates from all over the country constitute the core of Nasecore. For over twenty (20) years now, Nasecore has been at the forefront in raising nationwide awareness on electricity issues.
For the past 23 years, NASECORE has actively pursued its goal of protecting the rights of electricity consumers and has consistently made efforts towards ensuring that the supply of electricity is at the least cost manner.
NASECORE continuous to actively pursue its goals by initiating actions and making representations with Power industry regulatory bodies like the Energy Regulatory Commission, the National Electrification Administration (NEA), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Joint Congressional Energy Commission and even taking its initiatives up to the Supreme Court of the Philippines which favored some of its petitions upholding electricity consumer’s interest.
Mission Statement
To work toward a secure and affordable electricity supply to electricity consumers, particularly individuals and families and, to this end, advocate legislation that would promote consumer protection, intervene in proceedings in government agencies to represent the rights of consumers against powerful industry players and actively push for good government in electric cooperatives.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
1998
LEYECO II Electricity Rate Reduction
Its initial effort filed before the Energy Regulatory Board and now ERC in 1998 has resulted in a electricity rate reduction of P 0.41 centavos per kilowatt hour in the rate of Leyte II Electric Cooperative, Inc. (LEYECO II).
2004
MERALCO Refund of 827 Million
NASECORE together with homeowners association FOVA and FOLPVA filed with the Supreme Court a Petition for Certiorari, Prohibition and Injunction with Prayer for Preliminary Injunction and/or Issuance of T.R.O. against the ERC Case No 2004-112 Decision of the ERC on the application of Meralco to recover independent power producer costs under the generation rate adjustment mechanism (GRAM). In 16 August 2006, SC rendered its final Decision in favor of Nasecore et.al. declaring ERC Case No. 2004-112 Decision null and void and explained that rates adjustment shall be in no case automatic. This resulted to a refund of Php 827million.
2019
Voided the adoption of ERC
3. In 2019, the Supreme Court granted its petition in the case of NASECORE versus ERC where it VOIDED the adoption of the ERC of the current or replacement cost valuation of the Manila Electric Company’s (MERALCO) regulatory asset base. It remanded to the ERC for “the valuation of MERALCO’s regulatory asset base and the parameters whether expenses that are not entirely and directly related to the operation of a distribution utility shall be passed on wholly or partially to consumers, all to the end that electricity shall be provided to the consumers “IN THE LEAST COST MANNER”.
10 May 2018
3 Month Suspension of ERC Commissioners
Based on a complaint by NASECORE, the Office of Ombudsman, in a decision dated May 10, 2018, ordered the 3 month suspension of ERC Commissioners Alfredo S. Non, Gloria Victoria C. Yap-Taruc, Josefina Patricia M. Asirit and Geronimo D. Sta. Ana for Simple Neglect of Duty for tolerating the misuse of Bill Deposits by allowing its commingling with the capital or operation cost of MERALCO.
21 August 2021
Dismissal of former NEA Administrator
NASECORE was partly responsible for the dismissal of the former NEA Administrator for allowing Electric Cooperative to contribute funds to a Party List.
2021
Audit of All Electric Cooperatives
NASECORE urges the ERC to conduct a regulatory audit of all electric cooperatives of all its illegal contributions/donations to political parties/party lists.
2021
Filed Complaints with the Ombudsman
NASECORE filed numerous Complaints with the Ombudsman against abuses by Regulators and EC officers.
NASECORE believes that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) needs to be revisited. Prior to the EPIRA, the effective power rate then was was less than P4.00 per kWh in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. After more than 20 years of the EPIRA, the effective rate went up between P10-11/kWh. And its promise of lower electricity rates and no brownouts was never realized. Thus, in order to drastically bring down the power rates, NASECORE proposes that the government have a monopoly again on the generation plants and the national transmission system in order to lower the oppressive cost of electricity.
Meantime, NASECORE will work on removing the SYSTEMS LOSS charge and ALL TAXES in our electric bill.
NASECORE believes that an empowered and informed consumer is a protected consumer.
- Conduct of information campaigns on consumer rights, structure of the power industry and other relevant information
- Bringing issues affecting consumers directly to regulators and agencies concerned
- By direct action. Seeking legal remedies for any violation of law, rules or regulations.
NASECORE believes that it could best realize its mission by electing a member to sit in the House through the party-list system.
- While NASECORE has attending public hearings called by Congress in aid of legislation, its role is merely as a resource speaker; it can best attain its objectives if it has its own representative in Congress;
- Draft bills amending the EPIRA to make it more responsive to the consumers;
- Call for the investigation of the NGCP as to its costly, inefficient, and sometime interrupted delivery of electricity;
- Encourage the use of affordable, clean renewable energy;
- Push for a robust and resilient power infrastructure that can withstand typhoons and earthquakes.
- Offer consumers the alternative of installation their own off-grid supply of solar power.