Manila: Customers of the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) will see higher electricity bills this month as the company announced Tuesday an increase of PHP0.2639 per kilowatt hour (kWh). This brings the total electricity rate to PHP12.2901 per kWh from PHP12.0262 per kWh in February. This means that households consuming 200 kWh will pay around PHP53 more on their bills.

According to Philippines News Agency, Meralco attributed the higher electricity rate in March to the conclusion of the reset fee adjustment last month, higher transmission charge, and the increase in feed-in tariff allowance (FIT-All). In February, Meralco applied a one-time reduction of PHP0.2264 per kWh as ordered by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). Since this refund ended, rates increased this month.

Likewise, costs for using the power grid went up by PHP0.1294 per kWh due to higher service fees from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. The ERC also approved a new FIT-All rate of PHP0.1189 per kWh, up from PHP0.0838 per kWh, leading to an increase of PHP0.0351 per kWh in bills.

On the other hand, lower generation rate tamed the overall increase. "Tempering the increase in the March rates was the lower generation charge, which went down by PHP0.1686 per kWh to PHP7.0517 from PHP7.2203 per kWh last month due to lower costs from Meralco's supply sources," Meralco said. Charges from Independent Power Producers (IPPs), Power Supply Agreements (PSAs), and Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) for this month. "IPPs, PSAs, and WESM accounted for 31 percent, 47 percent, and 22 percent respectively of Meralco's total energy requirement for the period," Meralco added.

Meanwhile, Meralco vice president and head of corporate communications Joe Zaldarriaga has advised customers to practice electrical safety as the dry season approaches to prevent fires caused by faulty wiring, overloaded outlets, or improper appliance use. Safety tips include avoiding overloaded outlets, checking and replacing damaged wires, unplugging unused appliances, keeping devices away from water, and storing flammable items away from heat sources.

The power distribution utility urged the public to practice energy efficiency, noting that electricity demand rises by 20 to 33 percent during the dry season due to increased use of cooling appliances.