MERALCO has announced a PHP 0.2908 per kWh drop in overall electricity rates for August 2023, bringing an adjusted typical household rate of PHP 10.8991 per kWh from last month’s Php 11.1899 per kWh.
The adjustment is equivalent to a Php 58 decrease in a household consuming 200 kWh in average.
The lowered rates are amid lower demand for power during the rainy season, resulting in lower generation charges.
MERALCO Spokesperson and Head of Corporate Communications Joe Zaldarriaga explained that a decrease in generation charges was registered this August for the third consecutive month, amounting to PHP 0.2137 per kWh.
Amid the rainy season in the Luzon grid, power demand lessened, resulting in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) price decreasing by Php 1.278 per kWh. Power Supply Agreement (PSA) and Independent Power Producer (IPP) fees also went down by PHP 0.1688 and PHP 0.0853 per kWh respectively.
At the same time, a slight increase of PHP 0.0853 per kWh was recorded in their Legacy Independent Power Producer Contracts. Meanwhile, the Daily Luzon Weighted Average Price movement has been stable for the past three months.
According to Head of Utility Economics Larry Fernandez, MERALCO’s major power suppliers include the three power plants, namely San Lorenzo, Santa Rita, and San Gabriel, accumulating a total of 1900 MW baseload supply. The power suppliers use Malampaya fuel, adjusting every quarter based on oil prices.
For the first half of 2023, a reduction was recorded in global Dubai crude prices compared to the same period last year, which is now reflected in the August generation charge.
Transmission fees also decreased by PHP 0.0278 per kWh as taxes also went down by PHP 0.0269 per kWh. Meanwhile, the fees for other charges were reduced by PHP 0.0224 per kWh while distribution fees showed no change.
In related developments, despite eager promotions to convince target customers to apply for Lifeline Rate Discount, MERALCO Advisory Partner Maita David shared that they only received 3,259 applications, far from the 450,607 target household beneficiaries.
The Lifeline Rate Discount offers significantly lowered fees mainly for marginalized and low-income families consuming 100 kWh and below and 4Ps beneficiaries of SWDO Certified below the poverty threshold.