ERC, World Bank tackle wind pricing

The World Bank Group (WBG) is helping the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) tighten cost controls, primarily for indexation, on firming up a financial model that will make offshore wind projects commercially viable ahead of the Fifth Green Energy Auction (GEA-5) that will be administered by the Department of Energy (DOE).

- MYRNA M. VELASCO

Sharon Ocampo-Montañer, director of the market operations service (MOS) of the ERC, told attendees at the recently concluded Asia-Pacific (APAC) Wind Energy Summit that the regulatory body is still grappling to pin down a viable pricing structure for the first wave of fixed-bottom offshore wind projects that are slated for the auction ring later this year.

"We're also being assisted by the World Bank, updating on the cost parameters, looking into the financial model. We have to go back to the financial model mainly because under the draft TOR [terms of reference] of the DOE, it now allows for indexation onetime," she said.

Montañer expounded that "the developers can avail of this indexation adjustment from the time of award to commercial operations—so we have to put that also in the model."

As stipulated under the draft TOR for GEA-5, "the GET [green energy tariff] shall be subject to a onetime adjustment," which was specified to be aligned with Section 17 of the Green Energy Auction Program (GEAP) guidelines.

The TOR further prescribed that "the adjustment shall account for the period between the date of COA [certificate of authority] and the DCD [delivery commencement date] of the offshore wind facility."