ELECTRICITY rates this month could go up because of increasing pass-through charges, higher spot market prices, and depreciation of the peso, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) said.
‘Indications point to possible higher rates in November due to increase in pass-through charges,’ said Meralco spokesperson Joe Zaldarriaga on Sunday. The utility firm will announce the final rates on November 10.
There is an additional P0.0884 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that will be reflected in the consumer bill brought about the higher Feed-in Tariff Allowance (FIT-All).
The FIT-All is a uniform charge imposed on all on-grid electricity consumers, and is a component of the electricity bill, that ensures the development and promotion of renewable energy (RE) in the country.
The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) also announced higher prices in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) and reserve market prices in the previous supply month that add to the upward pressure both in the generation and transmission charges.
System-wide WESM rates soared by 49.4 percent to P4.54 per kilowatt-hour in October from P3.04 per kWh in September.
‘In addition, the continued depreciation of the Peso to historic lows is expected to affect dollar-denominated costs from Independent Power Producers and Power Supply Agreements,’ added Zaldarriaga.
Meralco registered over 8 million subscribers.