MANILA, Philippines—Manila Electric Company (Meralco) consumers should expect an increase in their electricity bills this month by 25 centavos per kilowatt-hour due to a hike in the cost of power supplied by power generation companies.
This means that households consuming 100 kwh of electricity a month or less will see their November bills rise by P25, while those consuming up to 200 kwh can expect their bills to increase by P50.
Ivanna dela Peña, Meralco vice president for utility economics, explained that the price of electricity for November actually increased by 32.7 centavos per kwh, after the generation charge rose to P4.2286 per kwh.
Dela Peña said the increase in generation charge was due to a number of factors, including the lower volume of electricity supplied by the independent power producers (IPPs), following reduced consumption during the October supply month (Sept. 26 to Oct. 25).
This decline was attributed to a series of typhoons that hit Manila and other parts of Luzon, which in turn, caused massive power outages.
Meralco sources power from three IPPs: the 500-MW San Lorenzo and 1,000-MW Sta. Rita power plants in Batangas, both of which are operated by the Lopez-owned First Gas; and the Quezon Power Ltd. Co.
"Add to this is the prolonged power outages in some portions of the Meralco franchise area resulting from the trouble in one of the transformers in the Dolores Substation of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines," Dela Peña further noted.
Also, the higher cost of power sourced from the National Power Corp. and the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market contributed to the overall increase in the generation charge, she added.
She said that the higher fuel cost and the slight depreciation of the peso were also among the factors responsible for the rise in over-all generation costs.
Dela Peña, however, said that even with the increase this month, the current generation charge is still lower than levels during the previous months, which had peaked at P5.02 per kwh in April.
This was also the first time in six months that the generation charge has increased.
"In fact, the rate this month is still lower than the P4.26 per kwh generation charge in June and July 2009," she stressed.
Meanwhile, Meralco external communications manager Joe Zaldarriaga said the generation charge may vary from month to month depending on the cost of energy supplied by the power producers.
"After a series of reductions in the generation charge for the past six months, it is not surprising to expect that sooner or later, the rates will register an upward movement... and this recent adjustment merely reflects the interaction of various factors contributing to the effective cost of power generation," he explained.
Meralco has always maintained that it consistently looks for the supply mix that would yield the most reasonable rates to customers. It added that it does not earn from the generation charge since it is merely a pass-through charge.
Meanwhile, Dela Peña said the "adjustment in the generation charge will, however be tempered by the reduction in transmission charges and the deferred Purchased Power Agreement refund ordered by the Energy Regulatory Commission, amounting to 6 and 1.7 centavos per kwh, respectively," Dela Peña said.
She added that cooler weather at this time of the year could also temper the effect of the generation rate adjustment on the over-all bills of customers.
