By Manila Standard – May 27, 2024, 8:20 pm
MORE Electric and Power Corp. said Monday it continues to offer the lowest electricity rate in Western Visayas despite an increase for May 2024 billing.
MORE Power said electricity price in Iloilo City, despite a P1.02 per kilowatt-hour increase, remains the lowest in the region.
The effective residential electricity rate for MORE Power, reflected on its consumers’ bills from May 18, 2024 to June 12, 2024, is P11.3263 per kWh.
These changes came amid a tight supply situation, highlighted by the “red” and “yellow” alerts declared by the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) in Luzon and Visayas over the past two months.
Niel Parcon, vice president for corporate energy sourcing and regulatory affairs (CESRA), said MORE Power managed to maintain competitive rates due to its bilateral contracts with power generators.
The strategy has limited its exposure to the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), where prices increased from P8.67/kWh to P11.85/kWh.
“In anticipation of the increase in demand for the summer, we have secured bilateral contracts of 66 percent. Thus, our exposure to WESM is only 34%. In fact, our energy purchases for this billing cycle have increased by 19 percent,” Parcon said, emphasizing the importance of the bilateral agreements with the power generators.
Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas recently praised this development as a significant boost for the city, anticipating an increase in investments and business activities that will bolster Iloilo City’s economy.
“This is also a very welcome development for every Ilonggo household, which will no longer have to worry about high electric bills,” he said.