Electricity prices at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) rose by 10.1 percent in December, driven mainly by higher power demand in the Visayas and Mindanao, data from the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) showed.
IEMOP said the average WESM price reached P4.38 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) as of December 25, up from P3.98 per kWh in November.
Despite the increase in prices, the average power demand nationwide slightly declined by 0.5 percent to 13,440 megawatts (MW), while average supply rose by 1.2 percent to 20,233 MW.
Prices moved differently across regions. In Luzon, the average WESM price fell by 15.4 percent to P2.98 per kWh as demand dropped by 2.9 percent and supply increased by 2.6 percent.
In contrast, Visayas prices surged by 36.6 percent to P7.22 per kWh, alongside a 10.1 percent rise in demand and a 4.4 percent increase in supply.
Mindanao recorded the steepest increase, with average prices jumping 56.7 percent to P7.82 per kWh. Demand in the region edged up by 1.2 percent, while available power supply declined by 7 percent.
IEMOP said the WESM data do not cover a full calendar month, as the market’s billing period ends on the 25th of each month.
