Filipino households paid the highest electricity rates among ASEAN countries in June, as rising generation costs pushed the Philippines to the top of the region's power price rankings.
The Department of Energy (DOE) reported that the country's average electricity rate reached P12.43 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), narrowly surpassing Singapore. The increase was largely driven by tighter electricity supply and higher demand during the summer months, resulting in more expensive power generation.
Power Shortages Push Prices Up
DOE Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara said the sharp increase was largely caused by supply problems in the Visayas, where 21 power plants were placed under forced outage. This left the region dependent on electricity imported from Luzon and Mindanao.
The Visayas grid also remained under repeated yellow alerts throughout June due to insufficient operating reserves following outages at major coal-fired power plants, including facilities operated by Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI) and Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC).
To prevent widespread blackouts amid soaring electricity demand, grid operators were forced to dispatch more expensive power plants, driving electricity prices even higher.
Higher Rates Mean Bigger Bills
The increase in generation costs has translated into higher monthly bills for consumers.
Meralco raised its residential electricity rate by P0.1488 per kWh in June, bringing the overall rate to P14.4833 per kWh. For a typical household consuming 200 kWh per month, the adjustment added P29.76 to the monthly electricity bill.
The utility also announced another P0.3428 per kWh increase for July, pushing the overall rate to P14.8621 per kWh. The latest adjustment is expected to add around P69 to the monthly bill of a typical household, further increasing the burden on Filipino consumers already grappling with rising living expenses.
