By Alec Go
Manila Electric Company (Meralco) consumers may experience a P0.62 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) hike in their March and April bills.
This, after Meralco announced that it is set to implement a deferred collection of around P1.1 billion generation charges this month and next month, resulting in higher power rates.
A household with 200kWh consumption may have a total rate hike of P1.11/kWh.
In a statement, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said it was informed by Meralco that the increase due to the deferred collection implementation is “to cushion the impact of increases in generation charges” in January and February.
“This total rate is less than the expected increase of about P0.92/kWh plus other adjustments for VAT and systems loss for the February supply month,” the ERC said.
“Such increase shall be subject to further validation by the Commission as to compliance with the underlying power supply agreements and substantiation of any fuel pass through component, as applicable,” it added.
Citing Meralco, the ERC said this is to offset adjustments by some suppliers who resorted to more expensive alternative fuels to ensure continuous supply during the scheduled maintenance outage of SPEX-Malampaya natural gas from Feb. 4 to 18.
It also noted the price increase in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market. – gb
