Meralco announces January 2020 power bills down

MANILA, PHILIPPINES, 8th January 2020 – To start the new year, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) announced today a downward adjustment of power rates, as the overall rate for a typical household consuming 200kWh decreased to P9.4523 per kWh this January from last month’s P9.8623 per kWh.

The reduction of P0.4100 per kWh will mean a decrease of around P82 in the typical household’s total electricity bill.Notably, this month’s overall rate is also P0.3862 per kWh lower than the January 2019 rate of P9.8385 per kWh.

Lower PSA charges bring down the generation charge

From P5.1967 per kWh last month, the generation charge for January decreased to P4.9039 per kWh, a reduction of P0.2928 per kWh.

The decrease is mainly the result of a P0.8659 per kWh reduction in the cost of power from Meralco’s Power Supply Agreements (PSAs). The share of PSAs to Meralco’s total requirement this month was at 49.4%.

Meralco Public Information Office Head Joe Zaldarriaga said that “lower PSA charges were brought about by a reduction in capacity fees as a result of the annual reconciliation of outage allowances done at the end of each year under the PSAs approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). The early completion of annual capacity payment for Sual Unit 1, Ilijan, Pagbilao Unit 1, and Panay Energy resulted in savings immediately passed on to consumers by way of lower electricity rates.”

Cost of power from the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) also decreased by P0.0634 per kWh due to improved dispatch and strengthening of the Peso against the US Dollar. Around 96% of IPPs costs are dollar-denominated. IPPs’ share to Meralco supply needs was at 41.2%.

Meanwhile, charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) increased by P1.7031 per kWh driven by tighter supply conditions in the Luzon grid. The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) placed the grid under Yellow Alert from November 26 to 28 and on December 16 due to forced and scheduled outages of various power plants. The Luzon grid was also placed on Red Alert on December 3 due to limited availability of plants in Batangas and Quezon because of Typhoon Tisoy. The share of WESM to Meralco’s supply needs was reduced to 9.4%.

Movements in Transmission and Other charges

This month, transmission charge for residential customers decreased by P0.0517 per kWh as a result of lower NGCP ancillary service charges. Meanwhile, taxes and other charges also registered a decrease of P0.0656 per kWh.

Meralco’s distribution, supply, and metering charges, meanwhile, have remained unchanged for 54 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 the NGCP. Taxes and other public policy charges like the Universal Charges and the FIT-All are remitted to the government.

Meralco provides energy efficiency tips for customers.

Meralco encourages its customers to continue practicing energy efficiency initiatives to help manage their electricity consumption. These include everyday household tips that may help save energy, such as: (i) unplugging appliances when not in use to avoid “phantom load”, (ii) using the aircon at mid-setting or at 25 degrees Celsius for maximum efficiency, (iii) using a power board or strip which can supply power to several appliances at once and allows a user to conveniently turn them off simultaneously with just one switch, and (iv) maximizing natural light during daytime and keeping appliances well maintained to ensure optimal performance. For more helpful tips, customers may visit Meralco’s website at www.meralco.com.ph or its social media accounts, twitter @meralco and facebook at www.facebook.com/meralco.