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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Economy devider Meralco electricity bills down in May

Meralco electricity bills down in May

Published May 13, 2025 01:05 pm

At A Glance

  • Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) said that power rates have gone down by ₱0.7499 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), which would mean a price cut from ₱13.0127/kWh in April to ₱12.2628/kWh.

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) reported a drop in May’s electricity bills due to lower prices from the spot market and independent power producers (IPPs).

In a briefing on Tuesday, May 13, Meralco executives said that power rates have gone down by ₱0.7499 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), which would mean a price cut from ₱13.0127/kWh in April to ₱12.2628/kWh.

Consumers that consumed 200 kWh will see a reduction of ₱150; those with a 300-kWh consumption would see a decline of ₱225; consumption of 400 kWh would also decrease electricity bills by ₱300; while those with a 500-kWh consumption would have a price slash of ₱375.

Joe Zaldarriaga, Meralco’s vice president and head of corporate communications, said that this month’s rate adjustment was “due to lower generation and transmission charges.”

According to Meralco, rates from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) slowed down to ₱1.1424/kWh, driven by the Luzon grid’s increased supply.

“While the grid’s peak demand rose by 1,372 MW, this was more than offset by the 1,475 MW reduction in average capacity on outage,” according to Meralco.

IPP charges also eased by ₱0.9555/kWh due to higher average IPP dispatch and the peso’s appreciation, which was said to be the strongest since December 2023.

Transmission charges have also contributed to this month’s rate decrease, as ancillary service (AS) charges from the reserve market and National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) ancillary service procurement agreements (ASPAs) both saw a slowdown in April.

This means that the cost of stabilizing the power grid has gone down, which in turn, provides relief in consumers’ electricity bills.

Other charges like taxes also decreased by ₱0.1385/kWh.

“Pass-through charges for generation and transmission are paid by Meralco to the power suppliers and the grid operator, respectively; while taxes, universal charges, and feed-in tariff (FIT) allowance are all remitted to the government,” the company stated.

Meralco also believed that these lower rates offset the price increase from power supply agreements (PSAs) by ₱0.1884/kWh.

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