Manila Electric Company (MERALCO) announced an upward adjustment in its electricity rate for December of around Php 0.1048 per kilowatt hour (kWh) due to an increase in the generation charge.
This change raised the overall rate to Php 11.9617 per kWh, compared to Php 11.8569 per kWh in November. This translates to an increase of approximately Php 21 in the total electricity bill for residential customers using 200 kWh.
“This month’s increase was largely due to higher generation charge, which goes to our power suppliers,” said MERALCO Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications Joe R. Zaldarriaga.
The generation charge surged by Php 0.1839 per kWh. This resulted from rising costs in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and adjustments in Power Supply Agreements (PSA).
WESM charges rose by Php 0.2531 per kWh due to tighter supply conditions in the Luzon grid, driven by an increase in average capacity outages of approximately 396 MW.
Meanwhile, charges from PSAs went up by Php 0.1050 per kWh, influenced by the depreciation of the Peso, which impacted around 51% of PSA costs, as well as a decline in average PSA dispatch.
The increase in prices was mitigated by a Php 0.0410 decline in charges from Independent Power Producers (IPPs), as the higher average IPP dispatch—following the return of First Gas Sta. Rita Modules 20 and 30 to normal operations after a scheduled outage—offset the impact of Peso depreciation on about 98% of IPP costs.
Meanwhile, the transmission charge decreased by Php 0.0940 per kWh, driven by lower ancillary service costs from the Reserve Market. On the other hand, taxes and other charges saw a slight rise of Php 0.0149 per kWh.
