Meralco rates higher by P2 per kWh in July

INQUIRER FILES

Updated on July 15, 2024 at 3:36 p.m.

Customers of the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will have to pay more to settle their power bills this month, with rates soaring by P2 per kilowatt-hour.

Meralco said rates in July will increase by P2.1496 to P11.6012 per kWh from P9.4516 per kWh last month.

The company attributed this upward adjustment to the “higher generation charge as power costs normalized following artificially low rates last month.”

READ: P4P urges ERC to veto ‘expensive’ Meralco power deals

Last month’s rates were supposed to be higher than May, but Meralco slashed its rate by P1.9623 per kWh after the regulator ordered the postponement of the collection of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) portion of the generation charge to soften the financial impact on consumers due to power outages across the country.

Earlier this month, Lawrence Fernandez, Meralco vice president and head of utility economics department, said the group saw “strong pressures” that could result in higher generation charges in July.

ERC reacts

Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairperson and CEO Monalisa Dimalanta said that while they already projected higher rates this month, the jump in generation rate was “higher than expected.”

“I think the higher rate (compared to last month) is expected, particularly for Meralco since they are implementing two staggered payment schemes — one arranged by them with their IPPs and the other as ordered by the Commission on WESM purchases. Bulk of Meralco’s supply comes from its IPPs,” she said in a message to reporters.

“Admittedly, though, the PhP2.0021/kWh generation rate increase is higher than expected. In any event, the rates are subject to the Commission’s validation pursuant to our cost adjustment (over/under) regulations,” Dimalanta added.