Devanadera fit to be next energy secretary – Imee

MANILA, Philippines — Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) chairman Agnes Devanadera is fit to be the next secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE), according to Sen. Imee Marcos.

Marcos said the transition teams of both the present government and that of her younger brother, presumptive president Ferdinand Marcos Jr., should seriously consider Devanadera as the next chief of the DOE.

Marcos lauded Devanadera for her recommendation to the next administration that the value-added tax (VAT) be removed on power generation and maintained only for power distribution.

“(Devanadera’s) clear solution for lowering electricity costs is long overdue,” Marcos said.

She added that Devanadera’s proposed solutions echoed one of her proposals in Senate Bill 219, filed during her first month as a senator in July 2019, which seeks to exempt not only the sale of electricity from VAT, but also the sale or importation of machines and equipment to be directly used in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity.