BUSINESS

Higher costs squeeze consumers

Maria Bernadette Romero-Alcazar · Nov 11, 2026, 10:57 PM

MERALCO customers will have to tighten their belts as their power bills rise this month due to higher power generation costs. However, consumers may expect relief starting November following approval by the Energy Regulatory Commission of a P2.64-billion refund to be spread over six months. — DAILY TRIBUNE IMAGES

Electricity consumers face renewed pressure on their power bills after wholesale electricity prices jumped 18.4 percent in October, as rising demand and tighter supply pushed up the cost of electricity traded in the spot market.

The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) reported that average wholesale prices climbed to P8.79 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from P7.43 in September, potentially driving up generation charges passed on to households and businesses.

Luzon saw the sharpest increase, with prices surging 51 percent to P7.83 per kWh from P5.18 as electricity demand grew 6.9 percent while supply fell 0.9 percent.

“Despite Luzon recording a supply margin of 3,100 MW, several outages contributed to the increase in price level during the period,” IEMOP said on Wednesday.

Nationwide, demand rose 4.3 percent to 14,793 megawatts (MW), outpacing the 1.4-percent increase in supply. This narrowed the available supply margin to 3,664 MW from 3,957 MW, adding pressure on market prices.

Consumers in the Visayas and Mindanao, however, saw some relief in wholesale prices as improved supply conditions pushed rates down 9.9 percent to P11.19 per kWh and 12.3 percent to P11.06 per kWh, respectively.

Regulatory price caps also helped contain price spikes in both regions.

Meanwhile, coal strengthened its dominance in the country’s power mix, accounting for 52.8 percent of generation, while renewable energy’s share slipped to 27 percent.