Iloilo City enjoys lowest power rate in W. Visayas

ILOILO CITY – The power rate in Iloilo City remains the lowest in Western Visayas, even with the PHP1.02 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) increase this month.

In a statement, More Electric and Power Corporation (MORE Power) said it has managed to maintain competitive rates due to its bilateral contracts with power generators, and limiting its exposure to the wholesale electricity spot market (WESM).

“In anticipation of the increase in demand for the summer, we have secured bilateral contracts of 66 percent. Thus, our exposure to WESM is only 34 percent. In fact, our energy purchases for this billing cycle have increased by 19 percent," Niel Parcon, MORE Power vice president for corporate energy sourcing and regulatory affairs, said.

The effective residential electricity rate for MORE Power, reflected on its latest consumer billing, is PHP 11.3263/kWh from PHP10.3062/kWh in April.

On Monday, electric cooperatives in the region explained that the increase in the billing of their consumers was due to the high generation cost of WESM.

“To meet our energy demands, we rely primarily on our contracted power suppliers and supplement our remaining power supply by sourcing additional power from WESM,” Shirley Laurente, president of the Electric Cooperatives Association of Region VI, Inc., said during a press conference Monday.

Electric cooperatives in Western Visayas, as well as in other parts of Visayas, resorted to WESM due to the shutdown of geothermal power plants since April that caused thinning reserves, the shutdown of six power plants due to mechanical equipment failure, and high heat indices and increased consumer demands.

Based on the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, Inc., from an average of PHP13.789/kWh in April, the power rate in areas covered by the electric cooperatives in Western Visayas rose to PHP15.56/kWh in May, or a difference of around 13 percent. (PNA)