THE subsidized “lifeline rate” for low-income power customers will be available starting Jan. 1 only to users who register for the program, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said.
Potential lifeline rate participants must register to be recognized as qualified marginalized end-users (QMEs), it said.
“Starting 1 January 2024, only those who have approved applications shall be entitled to avail of the subsidy provided under the Lifeline Rate Program,” the ERC said in a joint advisory on Tuesday.
In June, the ERC, the Department of Energy (DoE) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), issued an advisory requiring all distribution utilities (DUs) to implement the revised lifeline rate rules.
The new rules disqualify customers living in condominiums, subdivisions, and those with net-metering services from availing of the lifeline rate.
“The DSWD, DoE, and ERC have observed a noticeable increase in the number of (QMEs) who have registered under the Lifeline Rate Program as of Aug. 25,” according to the advisory.
“In spite of the significant increase in the number of registrants, there remains a considerable number of QMEs who have yet to avail of the benefits of registering under the Lifeline Rate Program,” it added.
Eligible for lifeline rates are beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and QME applicants who are not 4Ps beneficiaries but belong to a household of at least five members in which the combined monthly income is P12,030.
The agencies directed distribution utilities to “exert more aggressive promotion efforts to disseminate information” on the program and continue accepting and processing applications. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
