Millions of electricity consumers will continue to be protected from service disconnections and will have more time to pay their electricity bills after the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) extended emergency consumer relief measures through October.

In an advisory issued Thursday, the ERC directed all distribution utilities (DUs) nationwide to suspend electricity service disconnections for unpaid bills covering the August to October billings and continue offering flexible payment arrangements under Executive Order 110.

No disconnection

The extension means residential and non-residential consumers will not be disconnected for non-payment of electricity bills incurred during the three months.

Qualified households consuming up to 200 kilowatt-hours (kWh) a month may defer payment and settle their bills in installments over at least three months.

The ERC said the extension is in line with Executive Order No. 110, which declared a State of National Energy Emergency due to the conflict in the Middle East and its potential impact on the country’s energy supply.

All DUs nationwide

Under the advisory, all DUs in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao “shall suspend electricity service disconnections of residential and non-residential consumers in their captive markets for non-payment of electricity bills covering the period August 2026 to October 2026.”

The regulator also ordered utilities to implement “staggered or deferred payment schemes to ease the financial burden on consumers.”

Staggered installments

Consumers with monthly electricity consumption of not more than 200 kWh may defer payment of their bills during the covered period and pay them in staggered installments for at least 3 months from the date of receipt of the electricity bill.

The deferred amounts will be reflected in succeeding billing statements and may be paid in at least three equal monthly installments.

The consumer protection measures were first introduced following the declaration of a national energy emergency to cushion households and businesses from higher energy costs and potential supply disruptions linked to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.