Meralco rates up in November as peso drop, Middle East crisis persist

Résumé détaillé

Driving this month’s overall rate increase was the generation charge which went up due to higher costs of power suppliers still affected by the peso depreciation and the crisis in the Middle East

MANILA, Philippines – The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) announced on Friday, November 13 an upward adjustment of P0.4895 per kilowatt hour (kWh) in the electricity rate for the month of November, bringing the overall rate for a typical household to P15.5510 from P15.0615 per kWh in October.

For residential customers who are consuming 200 kWh, this adjustment translates to an increase of around P98 in the total electricity bill.

Driving this month’s overall rate increase was the generation charge which went up by P0.4344 per kWh mainly due to higher costs of power suppliers, which remain affected by the peso depreciation and the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.

Charges from First Gas/Prime CoreGen went up by P2.9241 per kWh mainly due to higher fuel costs resulting from Malampaya natural gas quarterly repricing and increase in the price of liquefied natural gas (LNG). First Gas/Prime CoreGen’s LNG use went up from 24% to 44%, as it needed to supplement Malampaya supply with imported gas. The peso also depreciated to its lowest level during the period, affecting around 86% of First Gas/Prime CoreGen’s costs that were dollar denominated.

Charges from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) also increased by P4.3946 per kWh, as average demand in Luzon rose by around 769 MW brought about by warmer temperatures in October 2026, which were even warmer than in October 2024, the last El Niño event.

Meanwhile, charges from Power Supply Agreements (PSAs) decreased by P0.2769 per kWh owing to higher average PSA dispatch.

For this period, First Gas/Prime CoreGen, PSAs, and WESM accounted for around 24%, 73%, and 3%, respectively, of Meralco’s total supply requirements.

Contributing to the overall rate increase were higher taxes and other pass-through charges which had a net increase of P0.2165 per kWh. This is mainly due to higher taxes resulting from the lower utilization of indigenous natural gas, which is exempt from value-added tax (VAT).

These also include the slight…

Début de l'article, extrait de Rappler. Pour lire la suite, ouvrez l'article chez le média.