Meralco: Slight increase for July consumption

Claire-Ann Marie C. Feliciano

MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) customers will pay a slight increase for their power consumption in July, given adjustments across the bill components.

Electricity rates will go up by around P0.03 per kilowatt-hour (/kWh) in July, the utility said in a statement yesterday, as the distribution rate cut partly offset higher generation and transmission charges.

“This adjustment comes after two straight months that power rates have gone down, for a combined reduction of P0.89/kWh,” Meralco said, referring to the May and June adjustments.

For July, households consuming an average of 200 kWh per month -- about 75% of the firm’s customer base -- will pay P5.40 more, said Meralco Senior Assistant Vice-President Larry S. Fernandez.

Those consuming 300 kWh, 400 kWh and 500 kWh on average will have to pay an additional P8.67, P11.95 and P15.23, respectively.

Meralco said there was a P0.10/kWh increase in generation charge to P5.41/kWh mainly due to higher costs incurred from suppliers.

Rates from its power supply agreements (PSAs) and independent power producers (IPPs) also went up by P0.26/kWh and P0.10/kWh, respectively.

“These were, however, partly offset by the P4.24/kWh reduction in the average price of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM),” Meralco said.

The company noted that the lower dispatch of several power plants -- which had scheduled and unscheduled outages during the June supply month -- also contributed to the higher generation charge.

These plants were identified as: Pagbilao 1 in Quezon; San Lorenzo units 50 and 60, Sta. Rita unit 40 and Ilijan 2 in Batangas; Calaca 1 and 2 in Batangas; Masinloc 1 and 2 in Zambales; Malaya 2 in Rizal; Quezon power plant; GNPower 2 in Bataan; and Sual 1 in Pangasinan.

But Meralco said a “favorable peso-dollar rate coupled with cheaper coal prices tempered the increase in generation charge.”

PSAs, IPPs and WESM accounted for 53%, 41% and 6% of Meralco’s total energy requirements, respectively.

The generation charge accounts for around 57% of total charges in Meralco’s electricity bill. The rest comprises the distribution charge (17%), transmission charge (10%), system loss charge (5%), and taxes and other charges (11%).

A P0.08/kWh hike in transmission charge, mainly due to higher ancillary charges, also contributed to this month’s adjustment.

Meralco said a P0.003/kWh cut in taxes also offset the P0.002/kWh cumulative increase in subsidies and system loss.

A huge mitigating factor in this month’s rates was the P0.15/kWh reduction in distribution charge that also covers supply and metering charges, the utility added.

The lower charge, which was ordered by regulators following an annual revenue requirement review, will be in effect until June 2015.

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings Inc., is partly owned by Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT).