Meralco cuts June power rates
By Myrna Velasco – June 6, 2019, 6:50 PM
from Manila Bulletin
The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will cut power rate by P0.1948 per kilowatt hour (kWh) in its June billing despite the recurring yellow alert conditions in the Luzon grid.
A worker repairs electric meters on an electric post in Tondo, Manila as Meralco announces a P0.19 decrease in electric billing this June. (photo by Ali Vicoy)
For residential end-users in the 200-kWh consumption bracket, that will entail an aggregate P39 reduction in their electric bills this month.
Overall, Meralco’s tariff in the June billing cycle will be at P10.0918 per kWh from a higher base of P10.2866 per kWh last month.
The generation charge component, which accounts for the chunk of the billed rate, had gone lower to P5.4158 per kWh vis-à-vis P5.5508 per kWh in May.
For the other tariff components, the transmission charge of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) had declined by P0.0427 per kWh, primarily due to the procured ancillary services of the system operator; while for taxes and other charges, they were also lower by P0.0171 per kWh.
The utility firm primarily attributed the generation charge cut “to lower charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM),” emphasizing that it happened “despite increases in the charges of independent power producers and power supply agreements.”
It emphasized that cost-purchases from the spot market went down by P0.31 per kWh “despite continued tightness of supply conditions in the Luzon grid.” The utility firm procured 9.0-percent of its supply from the WESM in the last supply-month.
Conversely, the company’s contracted IPPs, as well as its PSA deals, turned in P0.0556 per kWh and P0.0717 per kWh corresponding increases, partly due to the weakening value of the Philippine peso versus the US dollar.
“Dollar-denominated costs of IPPs and PSAs account for 97-percent and 68-percent of their charges, respectively,” Meralco has emphasized. It added that IPP-procured supply accounted for 41-percent last month, while PSA-underwritten supply had a 50-percent share.
“This second straight month electricity rate decrease represents a total downward adjustment of around P0.47 per kWh since May 2019,” the power firm said.
And as the summer season winds up, Meralco is still cautioning consumers on prudent usage of electricity given the tight supply conditions still pervading in the country’s main power grid.
Its smart usage tips, especially for households, include: unplugging of appliances when not in use to avoid “phantom load”; utilizing the air-conditioning system with mid-setting of 25 degrees; and using a power broad or strip which can supply power to several appliances at once and such can be conveniently turned off with just one flick in the switch.
