Meralco has issued a firm response to public comparisons between its power rates and those of electric cooperatives (ECs), saying such claims fail to reflect key differences in power sourcing, regulatory oversight, and reliability obligations.

In a statement, Meralco clarified that its distribution charge has not changed in a decade and is among the lowest in the country, even when compared with most ECs. Data shows Meralco’s rate ranks in the bottom 30% among all power distributors nationwide.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) also granted Meralco the lowest approved Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) among all private distribution utilities, reflecting its efficient cost structure.

“Despite such comparatively low rate, Meralco consistently provides a high level of energy security, power reliability, and efficiency. More importantly, Meralco continues to consistently improve on these performance parameters year after year, “ the company said.

The country’s largest distribution utility also pointed out that many ECs source most of their power from lower-cost coal plants, while Meralco uses a diverse mix of gas, coal, and renewable energy to ensure reliable supply for its over 8 million customers.

Gas plants account for about 50% of Meralco’s power supply. The company noted that there are not enough coal plants in the market—especially with the government’s coal moratorium still in place—to meet its growing demand.

In contrast, ECs have lower demand levels and typically do not source power from gas plants, which is why their total power rates may appear lower on paper.

Meralco stressed that gas-fired power plants are essential not only to its own franchise area but also to national grid security, helping avoid Red and Yellow alerts as seen in recent months.

“The clamor by some misguided groups that Meralco’s total rate be at par with the  rate of these 90 ECs that do not source power from gas-fired power plants actually represents a call for Congress to repeal the recently enacted Natural Gas law (RA No. 12120) and for the Department of Energy (DOE) to reverse its 2023 Power Development Plan that aims to more than triple installed gas-fired power plant capacity to support the country’s transition to 50% renewable energy in the country’s energy mix as well as reverse its coal moratorium and allow for the building of more coal-fired power plants. This clamor will clearly set the country back in terms of achieving its renewable energy transition aspirations of 35% by 2030 and 50% by 2040.”

The company added that unified gas procurement is already a DOE priority. However, to date, the National Electrification Administration (NEA) has not yet conducted a Competitive Selection Process (CSP) to fulfill Department Order No. DO2023-10-0022, which directs NEA to facilitate the joint conduct of CSPs for the power supply of ECs using indigenous natural gas as transition fuel.

Meralco reiterated that any increases in total power rates since 2024 are not due to its distribution charge, which remains unchanged.

“We emphasize that Meralco fulfills its mandate and powers its entire franchise area without relying on taxpayers money and government funding. We remain committed to delivering service that balances affordability with long-term supply stability for our over 8 million customers; as well as to support the country’s growing economy”.

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