MERALCO POWER RATES HIGHER BY P2 PER KWH IN JULY

The power company announced that the electricity rate for July will rise to P2/kWh (Photo courtesy of Philippine Daily Inquirer)

This month of July, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will increase electricity rates with that consumers will have to pay more for electricity due to higher generation charges as the power distributor announced on Monday.

According to Meralco, this was caused by the increase in generation charges amid the return to normality in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM). It can be recalled that the increase in electricity charges was postponed last month after the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) ordered that the collection of generation costs be divided into four months.

More than P2.1496/kWh will be added to the electricity bill this month, because of this the total electricity rate will be P11.6012/kWh which is equivalent to P430 additional on the bill of those who consume 200 kWh. P645 will be added for consuming 300 kwh and in 400 kwh, P860 will be added. P1,075 more for those who consume 500 kWh a month.

Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Chairperson and CEO Monalisa Dimalanta said, “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.”

Meralco vice president and head of corporate communications Joe Zaldarriaga said that, “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.”

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

Despite the implementation of the ERC order and the increase in power costs, it is possible that the electricity bill will drop in August. Electricity demand is seen to decrease due to the cooler weather.

"The reserve levels in the spot market are also improving so the price in the spot market is also decreasing. So, hopefully this will continue," Meralco VP for Utility Economics Lawrence Fernandez.

Source: GMA Integrated News

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