Arya News - According to the Philippines` Department of Energy, the country`s nationwide average reached P12.43 per kWh in June, P0.093 per kWh more expensive than Singapore’s.
MANILA – The Philippines recorded the highest power rates in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) last June, as the market relied on more expensive power generation plants to address the tight electricity supply in the Visayas, aggravated by a surge in demand due to the summer heat.
Filipinos, however, could see even higher electricity rates in their succeeding bills as fuel prices are on the rise due to renewed hostilities in the Middle East, according to an energy official.
“We had the highest power rates in the Asean, even more expensive than Singapore’s,” Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara said in a media briefing on Monday.
Guevara said the Philippines’ average nationwide power rate reached P12.43 per kilowatt hour (kWh) in June, P0.093 per kWh higher than Singapore’s.
Among the major grids, the blow was heaviest in the Visayas, with Southern Leyte Electric Cooperative recording the highest on-grid residential rate at P16.57 per kWh, 32-percent up from a month ago’s P12.53 per kWh.
Manila Electric Co., the country’s biggest power distributor that serves Metro Manila and nearby provinces, was also among the top distribution utilities with high rates.
In June, its residential rate reached P14.48 per kWh.
Among off-grid distribution utilities, which usually rely on oil-based generating assets, Busuanga Island Electric Cooperative had the highest residential rate at P24.92 per kWh.
Guevara attributed last month’s jump in power rates to the tight power situation in the Visayas, which was put under numerous yellow alerts, with some days even witnessing red alerts.
A yellow alert indicates that available power reserves are thinning, meaning any unexpected plant outage could trigger service interruptions.
A red alert, on the other hand, means supply is insufficient to meet demand, increasing the likelihood of rotational brownouts unless consumption is managed.
Officials from the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines earlier said that given the power strain in the Visayas, wholesale prices of power traded at the spot market had been surging as distributors scrambled to meet demand.
As most of the facilities on forced shutdown run on coal the cheapest fuel source for baseload plants or those that run 24/7—the market had to bank on more expensive power plants that run on other fuels such as oil.
“We have 21 power plants under forced outage, so the Visayas is heavily dependent on imported power from Luzon and Mindanao … the grid is frequently placed under yellow alert, and that is what is driving electricity prices higher in the Visayas,” she said.
“We also have high demand during the summer months, and therefore we have to operate the more expensive power plants,” Guevara added.
The DOE said it was coordinating closely with the Energy Regulatory Commission to make sure that the prices were fair.
The official could not provide projections for the coming power bills, but said the country “might see an increase in the price of electricity,” depending on the movement in the global oil market.
“Similar to what happened in the past, we will be encouraging our distribution utilities to first use the cheaper fuel before using the more expensive fuel,” she added.
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