DAVAO Light and Power Co., Inc.’s (Davao Light) overall residential electricity rate increased by P2.9601 per kilowatt hour (kWh) this July, bringing the rate up to P10.8973/kWh from P7.9372/kWh last June. A typical household consuming an average of 200 kWh per month will experience a P592.02 increase in their July 12 to August 11 billing compared to their previous billing.
The increase stemmed from the addition of the second installment of the staggered May billing of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) which the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) directed under Case No. 2024-017 MC. The ruling mandated all Distribution Utilities to stagger the collection from their consumers of the component of their generation charges arising from WESM purchases for the May 2024 WESM Billing Month in four (4) equal monthly installments, from June 2024 to September 2024.
Operated by the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc. (IEMOP), the Philippine WESM “is a centralized venue for buyers and sellers to trade electricity as a commodity where prices are determined based on actual use (demand) and availability (supply).” This is a channel by which Davao Light sources part of its power supply requirement.
“The generation rate is lower compared to the previous month given the decrease in power supply market prices and the availability of ample hydropower supply which is a cheaper source,” said Fermin Edillon, Davao Light Reputation Enhancement Department Head. “However the added payment to WESM which was not collected one-time in the previous month affected the overall electricity rate,” he explained.
Davao Light advises customers to manage their energy consumption to avoid high bills, especially in the next two months. “Since we still expect generation rate increases until September, we highly encourage our customers to efficiently and wisely manage their consumption to avoid bill shock,” Edillon shared.
Furthermore, Davao Light is grateful for the understanding of its customers as it implements the said ERC ruling.
