Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) customers will pay an additional P0.2816 per kilowatt hour (kWh) starting March, as the utility begins collecting P31.34 billion approved by regulators to recover higher fuel costs from power suppliers.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said the increase stems from an “abrupt and extraordinary surge in fuel prices” that led to a “change in circumstance (CIC)” under power supply agreements with San Miguel Energy Corp. (SMEC), South Premier Energy Corp. (SPPC), Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC), and AC Energy Corp. (ACEN).

“Despite the rate impact, which we achieved by stretching the recovery periods for all these adjustments, we are still anticipating that the overall net effect on Meralco’s rates of the CIC adjustments will be minimal or none at all.

Meralco has been implementing a CIC rate averaging around P0.28/kWh per month since September 2025 and this is to continue until February 2026. That is why we directed the implementation of the remaining CIC adjustments starting in March 2026 only so as to mitigate any impact on the overall rates of Meralco,” ERC Chairperson Francis Saturnino Juan said Tuesday.

Of the total, SMEC will recover P13.36 billion, equivalent to about P0.1051 per kWh over 36 months, while SPPC will recover P15.85 billion, or about P0.1246 per kWh starting March. PEDC will recover P380.62 million, or about P0.00093 per kWh.

ACEN will recover P1.53 billion, or about P0.0373 per kWh, under one contract with Meralco, and another P220.09 million, equivalent to about P0.0054 per kWh, under a separate agreement.

Power suppliers said fuel prices surged due to the coal export ban in Indonesia and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, prompting the price adjustments under their contracts with Meralco.