S.I. Power Corp. (SIPCOR), the Villar-led power producer, cannot resume operations despite a Court of Appeals (CA) ruling that overturned the revocation of its permits, because those permits have already expired, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said.

ERC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Francis Saturnino C. Juan said SIPCOR’s provisional authorities to operate (PAOs) for its generating units had expired by March.

“So SIPCOR cannot just resume operations without filing for its renewal or for a new provisional authority to operate or certificate of compliance,” Mr. Juan said in a Viber message on Wednesday.

Under ERC rules, a PAO functions as an interim permit that allows a generating unit to run while it completes the requirements for a certificate of compliance, the full license that generation companies must hold to operate in the Philippines.

In an Aug. 18 letter to Premiere Island Power REIT Corp. (PREIT), the power-focused real estate investment trust listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange, SIPCOR said the appellate court had granted its petition for review and reversed the ERC decision revoking its PAOs.

Citing the CA’s July 24 decision, the power producer said the court ruled that the ERC “failed to afford procedural due process in revoking the PAOs of SIPCOR’s generating units” for various reasons. According to SIPCOR, the court found that the regulator did not issue a show-cause order, did not provide the required notice and hearing, and failed to observe the 15-day period before its decision became final.

“In view of the favorable Decision, we wish to assure PREIT that, throughout the pendency of the instant case, SIPCOR has implemented good-faith efforts to address the concerns identified during the ERC’s investigation,” the company said.

SIPCOR said it has repaired and maintained its generating units and related equipment, and restored and tested its electrical systems. “These measures demonstrate SIPCOR’s commitment and readiness to resume operations in Siquijor,” it said.

Mr. Juan, however, said SIPCOR’s power supply agreement with the Province of Siquijor Electric Cooperative, Inc. has been terminated, and the cooperative has since contracted a new power provider.

ERC data showed that the PAOs for SIPCOR’s diesel power plants in the municipalities of Siquijor and Lazi had lapsed by mid-March. The permit for its Siquijor Expansion plant, which expired on Aug. 5, 2025, is awaiting approval of an extension.

Mr. Juan said SIPCOR could apply for a new PAO, but must submit all the required documents, including a certificate of endorsement from the Department of Energy — which had also been revoked.

He added that the commission, through the Office of the Solicitor General, will file a motion for reconsideration with the CA, a step that prolongs the legal contest even though the practical barriers to a restart now rest on permits and contracting rather than the court ruling itself.

The ERC revoked SIPCOR’s PAOs in August 2025 following consumer complaints about prolonged power outages and violations of operating regulations. At the time, SIPCOR was Siquijor’s sole power generator.

Siquijor is one of the Philippines’ off-grid island grids, drawing its power from generation built within the province rather than from the main transmission network — the setup that made a single generator’s regulatory status a supply-reliability issue for the island’s residents.

Before the revocation, the commission had issued two show-cause orders against SIPCOR over possible violations, including operating without a valid PAO or certificate of compliance and failing to apply before the extended validity of its PAOs expired.

Reported by Sheldeen Joy Talavera, Bworldonline