By Rjay Zuriaga Castor
Iloilo City residents continue to benefit from lower electricity rates as MORE Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power) announced another reduction in rates for October.
The average residential electricity rate for MORE Power in October is ₱11.0432 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), marking the fourth consecutive month of declining rates.
“This reduction is primarily attributed to a significant drop in the generation charge and the termination of staggered payments from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), which has seen lower average nodal prices,” the company said in a statement.
Earlier in June, the Energy Regulatory Commission approved the staggered payment of WESM purchases by power distributors.
The staggered payment system, which began in June, has helped stabilize rates.
The move aims to ease the burden on consumers affected by higher costs, especially during the Luzon and Visayas grids’ red and yellow alert statuses over the summer.
In June, MORE Power’s electricity rate was ₱8.7749 per kWh. This rate significantly surged to ₱12.8566 per kWh in July, ₱12.6668 per kWh in August, and ₱12.6195 per kWh in September. The July rate is the highest recorded so far this year.
Despite these increases, MORE Power customers continue to enjoy the lowest electricity rates among distribution utilities and electric cooperatives in Western Visayas.
