The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) announced a modest decrease of P0.0151 per kWh in electricity rates for May, bringing the typical household rate to P14.3345 per kWh, down from P14.3496 in April.
“Despite initial indications of an increase, Meralco power rates this May had a modest reduction,” said Joe R. Zaldarriaga, Meralco Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications. “This was made possible through proactive measures led by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to cushion the impact of geopolitical tensions affecting energy prices.”
Zaldarriaga cautioned that higher summer consumption could still raise bills, even with the rate decrease.
Several ERC-approved measures helped mitigate higher generation costs. Residential customers benefited from an accelerated refund of P0.4278 per kWh, up from P0.2024 per kWh, as Meralco was directed to return the remaining P14.2 billion over 12 months instead of two years.
Other contributing factors included a net decrease of P0.1482 per kWh in taxes and charges. The ERC also suspended the P0.0371 per kWh Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All) for May and June 2026.
Consumers further benefited from the VAT exemption for power generated from indigenous natural gas, implemented under the Philippine Natural Gas Industry Development Act (RA 12120).
Meanwhile, transmission charges fell by P0.0493 per kWh for residential users, further helping soften the overall rate.
The generation charge increased to P8.7942 per kWh, driven primarily by rising Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) costs, which added P7.7239 per kWh. To ease the impact, ERC allowed Meralco to reflect line rental caps under Power Supply Agreements (PSAs), reducing PSA charges by P0.1793 per kWh.
Costs from the Sta. Rita and San Lorenzo gas plants of First Gas/Prime CoreGen rose by P0.1786 per kWh, due to higher fuel prices and Peso depreciation affecting mostly dollar-denominated contracts.
For May, WESM, PSAs, and First Gas/Prime CoreGen accounted for 7 percent, 73 percent, and 20 percent of Meralco’s total energy requirements, respectively.
