For residential customers with an average consumption of 200 kWh, this equates to an added P69.00 to the overall electricity bill this July.
Meralco stated that the increase is due to the generation charge, which in turn is caused by the high price of fuel and the shutdown of Malampaya.
The generation charge increased by P0.1800 per kWh, or to P9.2504 per kWh, due to the higher prices of petroleum products.
"The charge from First Gas/Prime CoreGen is the most expensive in this billing period and increased by P0.3613 per kWh. This follows a month-long scheduled maintenance shutdown of the Malampaya natural gas facility which began on June 15, 2026. As a result, the Sta. Rita and San Lorenzo plants had to use the more expensive liquefied natural gas (LNG)," Meralco explained.
"The charge from post-EPIRA Power Supply Agreement (PSA) increased by P0.2678 per kWh, which amounts to P8.8694 per kWh, due to the effects of the ongoing crisis in the Middle East on the global energy market," Meralco further explained.
Meralco also stated that the price of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) rose to P8.0337 per kWh after the demand for electricity in Luzon reached a record high of 14,534 MW on May 28, 2026. Due to this, the supply became tighter, leading to the implementation of a secondary price cap on the WESM.
"FirstGas/Prime CoreGen, PSAs, and WESM covered 22%, 72%, and 6% respectively, of Meralco's total supply requirement for this period," according to Meralco.
The high electricity rates in July were also due to a tax increase caused by the 12% Value Added Tax stemming from First Gas/Prime CoreGen's use of LNG while Malampaya is not in operation, and which is not VAT chargeable.
The transmission charge and other fees also increased by P0.0668 per kWh.
"The pass-through charges for generation and transmission are directly paid by Meralco to power suppliers and the grid operator, while taxes, universal charges, and Feed-in Tariff Allowance are remitted to the government. There is still no change in Meralco's distribution charge since it decreased by P0.0360 per kWh for a typical residential customer in August 2022," Meralco further explained.
