The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) can lower its rates if it only decides to do so, a lawmaker said.
But Meralco has reiterated that its rates undergo a strict review process, ensuring that what the distributor charges is “fair and reasonable,” amid allegations that the power company has been charging high rates.
In a hearing conducted by the House Committee on Legislative Franchises, Rep. Presley De Jesus of the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperative Association Inc. (Philreca) party-list group, noted that if small electrical cooperatives in the provinces can offer cheap power to its residential customers, why can’t Meralco–purportedly the country’s largest power company–do the same?
The said committee chaired by Parañaque City Rep. Gus Tambunting is investigating allegations that Meralco was engaged in monopolistic and monophonic practices.
“Indeed, we in the power bloc, this is what we’re focused on, the energy sector, so in economies of scale, just for comparison, we have electric cooperatives offering residential rates as low as P6.50 per kilowatt hour,” said De Jesus during the House hearing.
He cited some of the cooperatives offering low power rates as Pelco II, Casureco I, Perelco, Surceco I and Neco 1. De Jesus said rates being charged by these cooperatives to consumers range from P6.50 to P8 per kwh.
According to Meralco, it charges P12 per kwh in residential rates to its estimated 7.7 million subscribers as of 2023.
The partylist solon said he sees something unusual in Meralco’s higher rates which the Energy Regulatory Commission should investigate. He said another concerning report was the possibility of Meralco expanding its franchise area further, even encroaching on localities that are already being served by smaller utilities.
De Jesus said the House should already review the Meralco franchise and its possible split into three for better service and lower rates.
Meralco had denied behaving as a monopoly. Meralco vice president and head of corporate communications Joe Zaldarriaga also stressed that Meralco complies with all government regulations.
Meralco also said allegations on high rates are misleading, and Meralco has always been transparent on its monthly rate adjustments and consistently contextualizes the reasons behind these movements.
The company said in fact, it has recently announced a significant rate reduction of 80 centavos per kWh for December, which effectively offset the combined increases in the past two months.
Meralco also said that the statements comparing Meralco to cheaper rates in other provinces do not paint the whole picture and that these allegations failed to acknowledge that rates of private distributors and electric cooperatives across the country vary, and Meralco’s rates, which the IEC judged as fair and reasonable, are not the highest if the entire industry is considered.