Meralco distribution charge approved at ₱1.48 per kWh
The rate is about 10 per cent higher than the existing charge and will take effect after the utility receives the regulator’s decision.
The Philippines’ Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has set Meralco’s average electricity distribution charge at ₱1.48 per kilowatt-hour for the regulatory period running from July 2026 until June 2030. ERC chairman and CEO Francis Saturnino Juan said implementation would begin with the billing cycle after the company receives the decision.
The approved amount is roughly 37 per cent below the ₱2.34 per kWh requested by Manila Electric Co. (Meralco). It also falls below the ₱1.60 to ₱1.98 per kWh suggested by some intervenors, although it exceeds the existing ₱1.35 per kWh charge by about 10 per cent.
The ERC put the utility’s four-year revenue requirement at around ₱342 billion, compared with its request for ₱532 billion, a reduction of 36 per cent. It trimmed allowances for capital spending, operating costs, the asset base and returns on capital, excluding expenditure it judged excessive or unnecessary.
This is Meralco’s first distribution rate reset since 2011. Unresolved regulatory periods delayed later reviews for more than a decade. The decision concerns the cost of delivering electricity through the utility’s network, rather than generation, transmission, taxes or other pass-through costs.
Jose Ronald Valles, Meralco’s senior vice president and regulatory management head, said the utility was still awaiting the decision. He said it would need a thorough review before determining the impact on customers.
