CUSTOMERS living in Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) will see higher electricity bills this month after the electricity distributor raised prices, mainly due to higher transportation costs.
In a statement on Tuesday, Meralco announced an increase of P0.2226 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), marking the second consecutive month of reductions. This reduced the average household’s total cost to P13.1734 kWh this month from P12.9508 per kWh in January.
Households using 200 kWh will pay about P45 more this month. Those using 300 kWh, 400 kWh, and 500 kWh will see increases of about P67, P89, and P111, respectively.
Meralco stated that the rate increase was mainly due to higher power transmission costs, which increased by P0.1975 kWh due to the large increase in the cost of related services from the reservation market and the higher cost of electricity delivery.
The company also cited the start of the collection of an additional P0.0770 per kWh in the universal mechanization (UCME) charge. This follows the approval by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) of the new UCME rate of P0.2763 kWh, up from P0.1993 per kWh previously.
UCME is collected from all grid electricity storage users to help subsidize electricity costs in remote areas not connected to the main transmission grid.
Other charges, including taxes, posted a net increase of P0.0554 per kWh.
Offsetting the impact of this increase was the decrease in the production charge, which decreased by P0.1073 per kWh to P7.6398 per kWh.
Costs from independent power producers (IPPs) decreased by P0.8108 per kWh, partially offset by higher costs from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and power supply agreements (PSAs).
The tight supply conditions in the Luzon grid resulted in a P1.5682 per kWh increase in WESM costs incurred by Meralco.
Meanwhile, lower shipments due to scheduled maintenance shutdowns of two major gas plants contributed to a P0.0483-per-kWh increase in PSA costs.
IPPs, WESM, and PSAs accounted for 24%, 10%, and 66%, respectively, of Meralco’s total energy demand for the period.
“Pass-through payments for generation and transmission are paid to the energy supplier and the grid operator, respectively, while taxes, global charges, and subsidies for renewable energy are all sent to the government,” Merco said.
Meralco’s distribution fee remains unchanged from the P0.0360-per-kWh reduction for the average residential customer in August 2022.
As the summer season approaches, Meralco Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications Joe R. Zaldariaga said the company was ensuring that its supply needs are met as demand is expected to increase due to the hot weather.
“Since our responsibility is to provide all our customers with electricity during the crucial summer months, we are making sure that we get enough electricity,” he said at the forum.
Meralco is the largest independent electricity distributor in the country, serving more than 8.1 million customers in Metro Manila and surrounding provinces, including Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal, and parts of Laguna, Batangas, Pampanga, and Quezon.
Meralco’s controlling shareholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is a subsidiary of PLDT Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund that is a subsidiary of MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which controls. – Sheldeen Joy Talavera
