Meralco proposes staggered billing scheme for power rate hike

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) has proposed to spread the implementation of its record rate hike of P3.44 per kilowatt hour (kWh) over three months – from December 2013 to February 2014 – to blunt its effect on consumers.

 

According to a report aired on “24 Oras” Saturday, Meralco’s proposal  for a possible staggered payment is currently being studied by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

 

 

“Ang kaniyang (Meralco) pino-propose, ay imbes na i-implement nga yung buong P3.44 (per kWh) at sumingil ng P9.10 sa generation charge ay P7.90 na muna ang kanyang isisingil para sa buwan ng Disyembre at iyong hindi niya masisingil ay sa Pebrero na lang niya sisingilin,” ERC executive director Francis Juan said.

 

The record-high generation charge this month and in January 2014 is due to the Malampaya gas line shutting down from November 11 to December 10, as well as the closure of a number of power plants for maintenance.

 

If Meralco’s proposal for a staggered payment scheme is approved by the ERC, customers will have to pay higher electricity costs until February.

 

The company earlier said that electricity rates will normalize by February 2014, once the affected power plants are back online.

 

Meralco and the ERC are set to meet on Monday to discuss the basis for the hike and to finalize details regarding its implementation.

 

Meralco spokesman Joe Zaldarriaga told GMA News Online in an earlier report that Meralco did a staggered billing on a higher generation charge in 2010, when the Malampaya gas line was also shut down for maintenance from February 10 to March 13 that year.

 

The consumer group National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms (NASECORE),however, has expressed its opposition to Meralco’s record rate hike.

 

In a letter sent earlier to the ERC earlier this week, NASECORE said Meralco should have looked for cheaper sources of electrical power months before the Malampaya plants shut down since it knew beforehand when the plants will temporarily cease functioning. 

 

Pete Ilagan, the group’s president, said the ERC should not approve the hike because it is unjustified. — Xianne Arcangel / KDM, GMA News