Meralco delivers relief this rainy season with quick response, lower rates

As monsoon rains continue to affect parts of the country, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) is powering relief for its customers, with crews and personnel working 24/7 to attend to power service concerns, and lower electricity rates this August.

The Manuel V. Pangilinan-led distribution utility continues to prioritize the safety and well-being of the communities it serves — urging customers to observe electrical safety measures especially in areas experiencing flooding.

At the height of heavy rains triggered by the enhanced southwest monsoon (habagat), power service interruptions affected around 98,000 customers as a result of damage to facilities and flooding in various areas. With its swift response, Meralco was able to quickly restore electricity service in various areas — bringing the number of affected customers down to 18,000 or less than 1 percent of its customers within two days despite the persisting bad weather.

“As we closely monitor the situation, we assure our customers that our crews will not stop until power service is back to normal for all our affected customers,” Meralco vice president Joe R. Zaldarriaga said.

With the rainy season persisting, Meralco also reminded customers to keep in mind the following electrical safety tips, especially in cases of flooding.

Stay away from downed power lines, damaged electrical facilities, and electrical equipment that may have been submerged in floodwaters. Report any hazardous electrical situation to Meralco.

Turn off the main power switch or circuit breaker. Make sure hands and feet are dry before touching any electrical equipment.

Unplug all appliances and turn off permanently connected devices.

Remove light bulbs if possible.

Clean mud and debris from electrical equipment using rubber gloves and rubber-soled shoes.

Ensure all electrical wires, outlets, and devices are completely dry before use.

Have a licensed electrician inspect appliances and wiring systems before turning them back on. Never use flood-damaged electrical equipment.

“We extend our deepest gratitude to our brave and dedicated linecrew, whose tireless work even in difficult and hazardous conditions, made it possible to safely bring back power service to the communities we serve. We also thank our customers for their patience and their help in reporting outages in their areas, which allowed us to expedite restoration efforts,” Zaldarriaga said.

Lower electricity rates this August

Meralco also announced this month a decrease of P0.0428 per kWh in the August electricity rate, bringing down the overall rate for a typical household to P14.7833 from P14.8261 per kWh in July.

For residential customers of Meralco who are consuming 200 kWh, this adjustment translates to a reduction of around P9 in the total electricity bill. Customers consuming 300 kWh, 400 kWh, and 500 kWh will meanwhile see bigger reductions in their electricity bills equivalent to P13, P17 and P21, respectively.

“We hope that this modest reduction will help provide relief to our customers. Rest assured that Meralco remains committed to delivering reliable, stable, and continuous electricity service not just this rainy season but all year long,” Zaldarriaga said.

This month’s overall electricity rate reduction is largely due to the P9.5 billion refund — equivalent to P0.5861 per kWh for residential customers — that the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) authorized Meralco to implement over a six-month period beginning this August.

The latest refund covers the difference between Meralco’s Actual Weighted Average Tariff (AWAT) and its approved distribution tariff for the period January to December 2025. Customers will see this refund as “AWAT Refund/(Collect) 2” in the distribution portion of their bills starting this month.

This refund is on top of the ongoing refund of P0.4278 per kWh that also pertains to Meralco’s AWAT for residential customers.

“As earlier explained by the regulator, this refund stems from the delay in rate reset process of distribution utilities in the country that includes Meralco. We submitted the refund application in accordance with the rules. We hope that this will help provide relief to our customers and assure them that this will be implemented in a transparent manner,” Zaldarriaga said.

The ERC-approved refund managed to offset increases in pass-through charges particularly higher ancillary service charges from the Reserve Market paid to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) as well as the higher generation charge which is paid to different power suppliers. Taxes and other charges, including the Feed-In Tariff Allowance (FIT-All) also registered a net increase. Collection of the Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All) meanwhile remains suspended this August as ordered by the ERC.

Pass-through charges for generation, and transmission and ancillary service are paid by Meralco to the power suppliers and the NGCP, respectively; while taxes, universal charges, FIT-All, and GEA-All are all remitted to the government.

Meralco’s actual distribution charge, on the other hand, has not moved for a typical residential customer since August 2022.