Meralco rates hike this June

Manila Electric Company has indicated that their consumers should experience an increase of power rates by 51 centavos per kilowatt-hour (kwh) this June.

According to a statement from Meralco, it said that the increase is mainly to augment the generation cost of all its suppliers for the month of May.

The whole production charge for the June bill will increase to PhP5.53 from an average of P5.02 per kwh last May.

The following are the suppliers that augmented its generation price:

• National Power Corp.
• Successor Generating Companies
• Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM)
• Independent Power Producers

WESM's average prices rose by up to PhP1.89 per kwh last month. WESM's energy share with Meralco also went up from 4 percent in the April supply month to 9 percent in May. IPPs and Napocor supplied 46 and 45 percent, respectively, to Meralco's total generation purchases in May. — ARA