Meralco rates up in October

Households should brace for a higher electricity bill this month, as Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) on Tuesday announced a rate increase for October, driven by higher generation charges.

In an advisory, Meralco said it will hike electricity prices by 31.91 centavos per kilowatt-hour (kWh), bringing the overall rate for a typical household to P15.0615 per kWh from P14.7424 per kWh in September.

This translates to an increase of about P62 in the total electricity bill for customers consuming 200 kWh.

Meralco attributed the increase to higher generation charges, which climbed by 49.73 centavos per kWh.

Charges from First Gas rose by P3.2206 per kWh due to higher fuel costs, while charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) rose by P3.5167 per kWh due to bill adjustments and tighter supply conditions in the Luzon grid.

Charges from power supply agreements (PSAs) declined by P0.7567 per kWh, as Malampaya natural gas utilization tempered the increase from the depreciation of the Philippine peso.

These were slightly offset by lower charges from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), as well as the 3.398 centavo-per-kWh net reduction in taxes and other charges.

Tuesday’s announcement comes after the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) announced two developments that would impact Meralco rates moving forward — the regulatory rate reset, which could push rates higher, and the P2.64-billion refund to customers.

Meralco clarified on Tuesday, however, that it has not yet received such decisions.

“Kailangan pa namin makita ‘yung details dun sa actual decision ng ERC. Ngayon we’re all relying on press releases. So to be able to share the actual impact on the end users, we’ll need to study the decision of the ERC for both cases,” Meralco vice president Lawrence Fernandez said in a virtual briefing.

(We still need to see the details of the actual decision of the ERC. Now we’re all relying on press releases. So to be able to share the actual impact on the end users, we’ll need to study the decision of the ERC for both cases.) —VAL, GMA News