Electricity rates to drop in November

MANILA, Philippines – Meralco announced that the rate for a typical household will go down in November by P0.0781 per kilowatthour (kWh) to P8.26 per kWh, the lowest since January 2010.

This month’s overall rate is lower by P0.29 per kWh compared to November 2015’s P8.55 per kWh.

This is also the fourth straight month of reduction in the overall residential rate.

This month’s decrease translates to a reduction of around P16 in the electricity bill of a household with monthly consumption of 200 kWh. The reduction is mainly due to the downward movement in the generation charge, which is P0.0502 per kWh lower than last month’s P3.8938 per kWh. 

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At P3.8436 per kWh, the generation charge is around P0.24per kWh lower compared to November 2015’s P4.08 per kWh.

The decrease resulted mainly from lower charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

This offset increases in IPP and PSA costs brought about by higher coal and natural gas prices and low dispatch.

There was also a decrease in the transmission charge by P0.0177 per kWh, mainly due to the reduction in the ancillary charge differential that National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) began to collect from its Luzon customers in June.

Taxes and other charges also decreased by a combined amount of around P0.0102per kWh.

Meralco’s distribution, supply and metering charges, meanwhile, have remained unchanged for 16 months, after these registered reductions in July 2015. Meralco reiterated that it does not earn from the pass-through charges, such as the generation and transmission charges.

Payment for the generation charge goes to the power suppliers, while payment for the transmission charge goes to NGCP.

In this month’s Meralco Advisory, Meralco also features a Bright Idea perfect for the coming Christmas season celebrations, showing how using a videoke system (usually composed of a TV, microphone and speakers) only costs less than P1.50 an hour. This is based on tests conducted by the Meralco Power Lab.

Watch this latest Meralco advisory