Terlaje: Net metering does not work for CUC

Commonwealth Utilities Corp. acting executive director Betty G. Terlaje said yesterday that the net energy metering law does not work for CUC because they have had concerns since the beginning that non-net metering customers are subsidizing the net meter customers.

Terlaje said in an interview with Saipan Tribune that they support any mechanism that will assist CUC, but she believes the CNMI’s current net metering law was designed based on another utilities’ setup.

Net metering is a low-cost type of renewable energy technology that allows customers to store the energy they produce from solar panels or wind turbines and use it at their convenience and then sell any excess power they produce to CUC.

Terlaje gave this testimony yesterday before the House of Representatives Committee on Public Utilities, Transportation and Communications in relation to House Bill 23-92, which seeks to suspend the net energy metering law in the CNMI. Terlaje appeared before the committee with CUC Power Division manager Lee Lieto and CUC Energy Renewable Department engineer Adrian Reyes.

“I agree that the bill will help CUC,” said Terlaje in an interview shortly after completing their testimony before the PUTC.

Under the net metering law, she said, CUC continues to credit the accounts of those who availed of the program, so they’re not paying for electricity.

“And that takes away from our improvements on our power plants on the maintenance of the distribution system,” Terlaje said.

Thankfully, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been quite helpful to them in restoring the electrical system during extreme storms, she said.

Terlaje diclosed during the PUTC meeting that they have about 535 active customers today under the net metering program and 50 of those are commercial and government, while the rest are residential. She said the over 500 customers produced approximately around 4.8 megawatts of power.

PUTC chair Rep. Vincent S. Aldan (Ind-Saipan), who is the author of the bill, stated during the meeting that the importance of his legislation is to create a level playing field. Aldan said in the past 10 years alone, the cost of renewable energy systems has dropped dramatically.

“It is now more affordable than it was 10 years ago,” he said.

Betty G. Terlaje