In a press statement, the Philippines’ largest power retailer said residents in its franchise area will see an upward adjustment of P0.0327 per kilowatt hour (kWh) this month, raising the overall rate to P11.6339 per kWh from last month’s P11.6012 per kWh.
For households consuming 200 kWh, this translates to an additional P7 on their monthly bill.
According to Meralco, the primary driver of this adjustment is a P0.1086 per kWh increase in the transmission charge, attributed to higher ancillary service costs, which surged by over 50% this month.
These costs, essential for maintaining grid reliability, more than offset a P0.0503 per kWh reduction in the generation charge.
Generation costs were lower due to increased dispatch from independent power producers and the peso's appreciation, which positively impacted dollar-denominated these firms’ costs.
However, effective charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market rose by P0.5940 per kWh due to deferred costs from May.
At the same time, Meralco warned of potential future increases in generation costs from First Gas plants, linked to Malampaya natural gas pricing changes pending regulatory approval.
