Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) customers may face higher power bills for the month of December due to higher generation charges, the electric company said on Tuesday, December 10.
In an advisory, Meralco announced an increase of P0.1048 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in electricity rates for December.
The latest figure raised the overall electric rate for a typical household to P11.9617 per kWh, up from the previous month’s P11.8569 per kWh.
Meralco Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications Joe Zaldarriaga said the residential customers with a consumption of 200 kWh will have an increase of P21 in their total electricity bill this month.
“This month’s increase was largely due to higher generation charge, which goes to our power suppliers,” Zaldarriaga said, referring to higher costs from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and Power Supply Agreements (PSAs).
WESM charges increased by P0.2531 per kWh due to tighter supply conditions in the Luzon grid, while PSA charges went up by P0.1050 per kWh because of Peso depreciation and reduced average dispatch. However, these increases were partially offset by a P0.0410 per kWh decrease in charges from Independent Power Producers (IPPs).
“The impact of peso depreciation, which affected around 98 percent of IPP costs, was more than offset by higher average IPP dispatch,” Meralco said, citing the return to normal operations of First Gas Sta. Rita Modules 20 and 30.
Zaldarriaga also pointed out that transmission charges dropped by P0.0940 per kWh due to lower ancillary service charges. Meralco’s distribution charge has remained unchanged since the P0.0360 per kWh reduction in August 2022.
The company also reminded customers to observe electrical safety during the holiday season, advising them to avoid overloading outlets, check Christmas lights, and unplug appliances when not in use. (TCSP)
