Power prices at the spot market are expected to stabilize at P4 to P5 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in the second half of 2025 on stable supply margins, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) said.
“From what we are seeing, we hope to see a stable supply margin for the rest of the year. We’ll be having some maintenance this third quarter… However, from what we are seeing, there is still an ample margin,” said IEMOP vice president for trading operations Isidro Cacho.
Cacho said power supply received a boost last year with the entry of 1,400 megawatts (MW) of gas plants and an increase of around 700 MW in solar generation capacity.
“We have also seen a huge improvement in the supply margin, not just because of the additional plants, but because of our usual conventional plants, we have seen improvements in terms of unplanned outages,” he said.
These factors led to a decrease in Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) prices this year compared to last year, Cacho said.
“Even if it [price] increases, it will still play within P4 and P5 [per kWh],” he said. Data showed that in June, system-wide average prices in the WESM declined 3.9 percent on lower demand and ample supply.
P4 to P5 per kWh Expected spot market price in second half
Average system-wide rates at the WESM fell P0.16 per kWh to P3.86 for the period of May 26 to June 25, 2025, from P4.01.
1,400 MW Additional gas plant capacity
Both system-wide supply and demand decreased by 3.5 percent and 4.1 percent, respectively.
700 MW New solar power capacity
System-wide available supply reached 21,432 MW, down from 22,218 MW in May. Demand reached 14,545 MW, down from 15,169 MW.
Average electricity prices in Luzon followed the system-wide trend, dropping 7.5 percent to P3.91 per kWh from P4.23 per kWh in the previous month.
Luzon’s available supply declined 3.5 percent to 15,076 MW, while demand also went down 5.4 percent to 10,400 MW.
