Meralco rates to go up by ₱2/kWh in July

Metro Manila, Philippines — Customers of power distributor Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will pay extra beginning this month to cover deferred generation charges until September.

In an advisory on Monday, July 15, the power distributor said it will charge ₱2.1496 more per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in July, bringing the overall rate to ₱11.6012 per kWh for a typical household.

The overall rate is up from ₱9.4516 in June.

“For residential customers consuming 200 kWh, the adjustment is equivalent to an increase of around ₱430 in their total electricity bill,” Meralco said.

The company explained the upward adjustment was “mainly due to higher generation charge as power costs normalized following artificially low rates last month.”

The generation charge is 55% of the billing statement. Other items are transmission (10.1%), distribution (17.5%), taxes (11.7%), and others (5.7%).

Meralco bills should have been higher in June, but the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) directed distribution utilities to divide Wholesale Electricity Spot Market charges for the May supply month in four equal monthly installments until September.

The power distributor turned to the electricity spot market — which charges a premium — to make sure supply was enough to meet the high summer demand, especially with the impact of the El Niño phenomenon.

The deferred charges resulted in the delayed delivery of the June billing statement. Meralco said the July statement will be late as well.

“We again appeal for the understanding of our customers over the delayed bills as we sought guidance from the ERC on the implementation of this month’s rate adjustment,” said Joe Zaldarriaga, Meralco vice president and head of corporate communications.

“Rest assured that Meralco will adjust the due dates to give our customers enough time to settle their bills,” he added.