Meralco customers to get P13.9 billion in refunds
MANILA, Philippines — Customers of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) will receive P13.9 billion worth of refunds over the next 2 years or longer under a latest order from regulators released Friday.
In a statement, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said the refund means consumers will see their monthly power bills down by an average of P0.1529 per kilowatt hour. The exact amount of refund will be a line item in each customer’s bill beginning March.
The amount to be returned were “over-recoveries” representing the difference between collections from Meralco’s actual weighted average tariff and ERC’s interim average rate. Meralco itself petitioned ERC for the refund, and is prepared to enforce it.
“We appreciate the provisional approval and that we will follow the order as this will provide much needed relief to our customers,” Joe Zaldarriaga, the utility firm’s vice-president for corporate communications, said in a Viber message.
In its pleading to regulators that resulted into the refund, the Pangilinan-led power distributor said it wanted to “true-up” its AWAT as against the ERC’s approved rates.
The order was made after trading hours. Shares at Meralco closed down 1.26% at P282 each to end the trading week on Friday.
Meralco explained in news reports that its AWAT was computed based on its distribution rate, which increased and “differed” from much lower IAR at the height of pandemic last year when households’ power consumption went up.
Years before that, distribution charges likewise jumped in the second half of 2015, thereby making AWAT no longer reflective of IAR.
Refunds would be good news for Meralco customers still struggling to settle their bills after the coronavirus pandemic threw the economy into recession, and grace periods on most utility bills as mandated by law ended last year.
Disconnections however are expected to have been limited. Following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order, formalized later by the energy department, Meralco has suspended cutting power on unpaid bills of customers consuming 200 kWh and below until March 31.
“The Commission approved MERALCO’s prayer for the issuance of a provisional authority in order to allow their customers to immediately enjoy the benefits of the proposed refund and provide immediate rate relief especially during this time of pandemic,” said Agnes Devanadera, ERC chair and chief executive.
“We hope that the reduction in rate could help our consumers cope with the still ongoing pandemic,” she said in a statement.
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